Selectively multplexing incoming webrtc traffic and/or de-multiplexing outgoing webrtc traffic by a client-based webrtc proxy on behalf of a webrtc multimedia client application

ABSTRACT

In an embodiment, a first WebRTC proxy module on a first UE receives a multiplexed stream from a first WebRTC multimedia client application on the first UE. The first WebRTC proxy module de-multiplexes into at least first and second de-multiplexed streams. The first WebRTC proxy module sends the first de-multiplexed stream to a second WebRTC proxy module on a second UE via a first set of links with QoS, and sends a second de-multiplexed stream to the second WebRTC proxy module on a second set of links. The second WebRTC proxy module re-multiplexes the first and second de-multiplexed streams to obtain either an original or compressed version of the multiplexed stream, and then delivers the re-multiplexed stream to a second WebRTC multimedia client application on the second UE.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY UNDER 35 U.S.C. §119

The present application for patent claims priority to ProvisionalApplication No. 61/878,510, entitled “SELECTIVELY MULTPLEXING INCOMINGWEBRTC TRAFFIC AND/OR DE-MULTIPLEXING OUTGOING WEBRTC TRAFFIC BY ACLIENT-BASED WEBRTC PROXY ON BEHALF OF A WEBRTC MULTIMEDIA CLIENTAPPLICATION”, filed Sep. 16, 2013, by the same inventors as the subjectapplication, assigned to the assignee hereof and hereby expresslyincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Embodiments of the invention relate to selectively multiplexing incomingWeb Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) traffic and/or de-multiplexingoutgoing WebRTC traffic by a client-based WebRTC proxy on behalf of aWebRTC multimedia client application.

2. Description of the Related Art

Wireless communication systems have developed through variousgenerations, including a first-generation analog wireless phone service(1G), a second-generation (2G) digital wireless phone service (includinginterim 2.5G and 2.75G networks) and third-generation (3G) and fourth(4G) high speed data/Internet-capable wireless services. There arepresently many different types of wireless communication systems in use,including Cellular and Personal Communications Service (PCS) systems.Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular Analog AdvancedMobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on CodeDivision Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access(FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), the Global System forMobile access (GSM) variation of TDMA, and newer hybrid digitalcommunication systems using both TDMA and CDMA technologies.

More recently, Long Term Evolution (LTE) has been developed as awireless communications protocol for wireless communication ofhigh-speed data for mobile phones and other data terminals. LTE is basedon GSM, and includes contributions from various GSM-related protocolssuch as Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), and UniversalMobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) protocols such as High-SpeedPacket Access (HSPA).

The Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) along with the Internet EngineeringTask Force (IETF) started development in 2011 of a web developertechnology called Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC). WebRTC is aprotocol that permits a browser (or endpoint) to engage in peer-to-peer(P2P) real-time communication with one or more other endpointsregardless of the relative location of the endpoints (e.g., whether therespective endpoints on the same device, in the same private network,both behind distinct Network Address Translation (NATs) and/orfirewalls, etc.).

WebRTC leverages the Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP) for thetransmission of real-time media. RTP is a flexible protocol that canserve as a transport protocol for many different media types. Thesemedia types can be broadly classified as mapping to audio or video, orcan be more specific by designating information such as an associatedaudio or video codec, bandwidth requirements, audio or video resolution,etc. Moreover, in a mesh conferencing model, multiple media streams maybe sent P2P to enable client-based audio mixing or video compositing.

Because endpoints communicating via WebRTC can be separated by one ormore NATs and/or firewalls that limit the number of end-to-endconnections between the respective endpoints, WebRTC allows formultiplexing of RTP streams through a single IP address and port. Due inpart to this limitation, existing WebRTC specifications recommend thatmultiplexing be employed for RTP and RTP control protocol (RTCP)communications. When streams of multiple types are multiplexed throughone IP address and port, offering differentiated Quality of Service(QoS) to different types of media becomes more challenging.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, a first WebRTC proxy module on a first UE receives amultiplexed stream from a first WebRTC multimedia client application onthe first UE. The first WebRTC proxy module de-multiplexes into at leastfirst and second de-multiplexed streams. The first WebRTC proxy modulesends the first de-multiplexed stream to a second WebRTC proxy module ona second UE via a first set of links with QoS, and sends a secondde-multiplexed stream to the second WebRTC proxy module on a second setof links. The second WebRTC proxy module re-multiplexes the first andsecond de-multiplexed streams to obtain either an original or compressedversion of the multiplexed stream, and then delivers the re-multiplexedstream to a second WebRTC multimedia client application on the secondUE.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of embodiments of the invention and many ofthe attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the samebecomes better understood by reference to the following detaileddescription when considered in connection with the accompanying drawingswhich are presented solely for illustration and not limitation of theinvention, and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a high-level system architecture of a wirelesscommunications system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example configuration of a radio access network(RAN) and a packet-switched portion of a core network for a 1x EV-DOnetwork in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2B illustrates an example configuration of the RAN and apacket-switched portion of a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) corenetwork within a 3G UMTS W-CDMA system in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 2C illustrates another example configuration of the RAN and apacket-switched portion of a GPRS core network within a 3G UMTS W-CDMAsystem in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2D illustrates an example configuration of the RAN and apacket-switched portion of the core network that is based on an EvolvedPacket System (EPS) or Long Term Evolution (LTE) network in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2E illustrates an example configuration of the enhanced High RatePacket Data (HRPD) RAN connected to an EPS or LTE network and also apacket-switched portion of an HRPD core network in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates examples of user equipments (UEs) in accordance withembodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a communication device that includes logic configuredto perform functionality in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a more detailed implementation example of a clientapplication initiated directional QoS management procedure in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6A illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that joins a half-duplex PTT session while being servedby a 1x EV-DO network (Legacy HRPD) as in FIG. 2A or an eHRPD network asin FIG. 2E in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6B illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that joins a half-duplex PTT session while being servedby a W-CDMA network as in FIG. 2B or FIG. 2C in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6C illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that originates a half-duplex PTT session while beingserved by an LTE network as in FIG. 2D in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIGS. 7A-7B are directed to selective QoS control procedures that aresimilar to FIG. 5 but are implemented at an application server 170instead of the UE client application in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 7C illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 7B within an LTEnetwork for a given UE (either a call originator or call target) joininga half-duplex PTT session in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 8A illustrates a more detailed implementation example of a corenetwork initiated directional QoS management procedure in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8B illustrates an even more detailed implementation of FIG. 8A,respectively, whereby LTE-specific and W-CDMA-specific components andmessages are referenced more explicitly in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 8C illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 8B within a W-CDMAnetwork for a given UE that is a call target of a half-duplex PTTsession originated by some other UE in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 8D illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 8B within an LTEnetwork for a given UE that is a call originator of a half-duplex PTTsession in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9A illustrates a QoS management procedure whereby the GBR resourcesare managed locally at the RAN and the core network in accordance withan embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9B illustrates an even more detailed implementation of FIG. 9A,respectively, whereby LTE-specific components and messages arereferenced more explicitly in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIGS. 10A-10B illustrate RAN-initiated timer-based direction QoS flowmanagement procedures with respect to W-CDMA and EV-DO architectures,respectively, in accordance with embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a conventional flow of traffic for a Web Real-TimeCommunication (WebRTC) session between two UEs.

FIG. 12A illustrates a flow of traffic for a WebRTC session between twoUEs that are served by the same serving network in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 12B illustrates a flow of traffic for a WebRTC session between twoUEs that are served by different serving networks in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a process of setting up a QoS link for the WebRTCsession followed by de-multiplexing at the source UE in the WebRTCsession in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates an LTE-specific implementation of the process ofFIG. 13 based on a server-based NW-initiated QoS procedure for aUE-originated WebRTC session in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 15 illustrates an LTE-specific implementation of the process ofFIG. 13 based on a UE-initiated QoS procedure in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example implementation of a portion of theprocess of FIG. 13 based on another NW-initiated QoS procedure inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 17 is directed to a high-level process of setting up a QoS link forthe WebRTC session followed by re-multiplexing at the target UE in theWebRTC session in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the invention are disclosed in the following description andrelated drawings directed to specific embodiments of the invention.Alternate embodiments may be devised without departing from the scope ofthe invention. Additionally, well-known elements of the invention willnot be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure therelevant details of the invention.

The words “exemplary” and/or “example” are used herein to mean “servingas an example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment describedherein as “exemplary” and/or “example” is not necessarily to beconstrued as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. Likewise,the term “embodiments of the invention” does not require that allembodiments of the invention include the discussed feature, advantage ormode of operation.

Further, many embodiments are described in terms of sequences of actionsto be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It willbe recognized that various actions described herein can be performed byspecific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits(ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or moreprocessors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, these sequence ofactions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirelywithin any form of computer readable storage medium having storedtherein a corresponding set of computer instructions that upon executionwould cause an associated processor to perform the functionalitydescribed herein. Thus, the various aspects of the invention may beembodied in a number of different forms, all of which have beencontemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Inaddition, for each of the embodiments described herein, thecorresponding form of any such embodiments may be described herein as,for example, “logic configured to” perform the described action.

A client device, referred to herein as a user equipment (UE), may bemobile or stationary, and may communicate with a radio access network(RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” may be referred to interchangeablyas an “access terminal” or “AT”, a “wireless device”, a “subscriberdevice”, a “subscriber terminal”, a “subscriber station”, a “userterminal” or UT, a “mobile terminal”, a “mobile station” and variationsthereof. Generally, UEs can communicate with a core network via the RAN,and through the core network the UEs can be connected with externalnetworks such as the Internet. Of course, other mechanisms of connectingto the core network and/or the Internet are also possible for the UEs,such as over wired access networks, WiFi networks (e.g., based on IEEE802.11, etc.) and so on. UEs can be embodied by any of a number of typesof devices including but not limited to PC cards, compact flash devices,external or internal modems, wireless or wireline phones, and so on. Acommunication link through which UEs can send signals to the RAN iscalled an uplink channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reversecontrol channel, an access channel, etc.). A communication link throughwhich the RAN can send signals to UEs is called a downlink or forwardlink channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcastchannel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein the termtraffic channel (TCH) can refer to either an uplink/reverse ordownlink/forward traffic channel.

FIG. 1 illustrates a high-level system architecture of a wirelesscommunications system 100 in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. The wireless communications system 100 contains UEs 1 . . .N. The UEs 1 . . . N can include cellular telephones, personal digitalassistant (PDAs), pagers, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, and soon. For example, in FIG. 1, UEs 1 . . . 2 are illustrated as cellularcalling phones, UEs 3 . . . 5 are illustrated as cellular touchscreenphones or smart phones, and UE N is illustrated as a desktop computer orPC.

Referring to FIG. 1, UEs 1 . . . N are configured to communicate with anaccess network (e.g., the RAN 120, an access point 125, etc.) over aphysical communications interface or layer, shown in FIG. 1 as airinterfaces 104, 106, 108 and/or a direct wired connection. The airinterfaces 104 and 106 can comply with a given cellular communicationsprotocol (e.g., CDMA, EVDO, eHRPD, GSM, EDGE, W-CDMA, LTE, etc.), whilethe air interface 108 can comply with a wireless IP protocol (e.g., IEEE802.11). The RAN 120 includes a plurality of access points that serveUEs over air interfaces, such as the air interfaces 104 and 106. Theaccess points in the RAN 120 can be referred to as access nodes or ANs,access points or APs, base stations or BSs, Node Bs, eNode Bs, and soon. These access points can be terrestrial access points (or groundstations), or satellite access points. The RAN 120 is configured toconnect to a core network 140 that can perform a variety of functions,including bridging circuit switched (CS) calls between UEs served by theRAN 120 and other UEs served by the RAN 120 or a different RANaltogether, and can also mediate an exchange of packet-switched (PS)data with external networks such as Internet 175. The Internet 175includes a number of routing agents and processing agents (not shown inFIG. 1 for the sake of convenience). In FIG. 1, UE N is shown asconnecting to the Internet 175 directly (i.e., separate from the corenetwork 140, such as over an Ethernet connection of WiFi or 802.11-basednetwork). The Internet 175 can thereby function to bridgepacket-switched data communications between UE N and UEs 1 . . . N viathe core network 140. Also shown in FIG. 1 is the access point 125 thatis separate from the RAN 120. The access point 125 may be connected tothe Internet 175 independent of the core network 140 (e.g., via anoptical communication system such as FiOS, a cable modem, etc.). The airinterface 108 may serve UE 4 or UE 5 over a local wireless connection,such as IEEE 802.11 in an example. UE N is shown as a desktop computerwith a wired connection to the Internet 175, such as a direct connectionto a modem or router, which can correspond to the access point 125itself in an example (e.g., for a WiFi router with both wired andwireless connectivity).

Referring to FIG. 1, an application server 170 is shown as connected tothe Internet 175, the core network 140, or both. The application server170 can be implemented as a plurality of structurally separate servers,or alternately may correspond to a single server. As will be describedbelow in more detail, the application server 170 is configured tosupport one or more communication services (e.g., Voice-over-InternetProtocol (VoIP) sessions, Push-to-Talk (PTT) sessions, groupcommunication sessions, social networking services, etc.) for UEs thatcan connect to the application server 170 via the core network 140and/or the Internet 175.

Examples of protocol-specific implementations for the RAN 120 and thecore network 140 are provided below with respect to FIGS. 2A through 2Dto help explain the wireless communications system 100 in more detail.In particular, the components of the RAN 120 and the core network 140corresponds to components associated with supporting packet-switched(PS) communications, whereby legacy circuit-switched (CS) components mayalso be present in these networks, but any legacy CS-specific componentsare not shown explicitly in FIGS. 2A-2D.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example configuration of the RAN 120 and the corenetwork 140 for packet-switched communications in a CDMA2000 1xEvolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) network in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2A, the RAN 120 includesa plurality of base stations (BSs) 200A, 205A and 210A that are coupledto a base station controller (BSC) 215A over a wired backhaul interface.A group of BSs controlled by a single BSC is collectively referred to asa subnet. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art,the RAN 120 can include multiple BSCs and subnets, and a single BSC isshown in FIG. 2A for the sake of convenience. The BSC 215A communicateswith a packet control function (PCF) 220A within the core network 140over an A9 connection. The PCF 220A performs certain processingfunctions for the BSC 215A related to packet data. The PCF 220Acommunicates with a Packet Data Serving Node (PDSN) 225A within the corenetwork 140 over an A11 connection. The PDSN 225A has a variety offunctions, including managing Point-to-Point (PPP) sessions, acting as ahome agent (HA) and/or foreign agent (FA), and is similar in function toa Gateway General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Support Node (GGSN) in GSMand UMTS networks (described below in more detail). The PDSN 225Aconnects the core network 140 to external IP networks, such as theInternet 175.

FIG. 2B illustrates an example configuration of the RAN 120 and apacket-switched portion of the core network 140 that is configured as aGPRS core network within a 3G UMTS W-CDMA system in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2B, the RAN 120 includesa plurality of Node Bs 200B, 205B and 210B that are coupled to a RadioNetwork Controller (RNC) 215B over a wired backhaul interface. Similarto 1x EV-DO networks, a group of Node Bs controlled by a single RNC iscollectively referred to as a subnet. As will be appreciated by one ofordinary skill in the art, the RAN 120 can include multiple RNCs andsubnets, and a single RNC is shown in FIG. 2B for the sake ofconvenience. The RNC 215B is responsible for signaling, establishing andtearing down bearer channels (i.e., data channels) between a ServingGRPS Support Node (SGSN) 220B in the core network 140 and UEs served bythe RAN 120. If link layer encryption is enabled, the RNC 215B alsoencrypts the content before forwarding it to the RAN 120 fortransmission over an air interface. The function of the RNC 215B iswell-known in the art and will not be discussed further for the sake ofbrevity.

In FIG. 2B, the core network 140 includes the above-noted SGSN 220B (andpotentially a number of other SGSNs as well) and a GGSN 225B. Generally,GPRS is a protocol used in GSM for routing IP packets. The GPRS corenetwork (e.g., the GGSN 225B and one or more SGSNs 220B) is thecentralized part of the GPRS system and also provides support for W-CDMAbased 3G access networks. The GPRS core network is an integrated part ofthe GSM core network (i.e., the core network 140) that provides mobilitymanagement, session management and transport for IP packet services inGSM and W-CDMA networks.

The GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP) is the defining IP protocol of theGPRS core network. The GTP is the protocol which allows end users (e.g.,UEs) of a GSM or W-CDMA network to move from place to place whilecontinuing to connect to the Internet 175 as if from one location at theGGSN 225B. This is achieved by transferring the respective UE's datafrom the UE's current SGSN 220B to the GGSN 225B, which is handling therespective UE's session.

Three forms of GTP are used by the GPRS core network; namely, (i) GTP-U,(ii) GTP-C and (iii) GTP′ (GTP Prime). GTP-U is used for transfer ofuser data in separated tunnels for each packet data protocol (PDP)context. GTP-C is used for control signaling (e.g., setup and deletionof PDP contexts, verification of GSN reach-ability, updates ormodifications such as when a subscriber moves from one SGSN to another,etc.). GTP′ is used for transfer of charging data from GSNs to acharging function.

Referring to FIG. 2B, the GGSN 225B acts as an interface between a GPRSbackbone network (not shown) and the Internet 175. The GGSN 225Bextracts packet data with associated a packet data protocol (PDP) format(e.g., IP or PPP) from GPRS packets coming from the SGSN 220B, and sendsthe packets out on a corresponding packet data network. In the otherdirection, the incoming data packets are directed by the GGSN connectedUE to the SGSN 220B which manages and controls the Radio Access Bearer(RAB) of a target UE served by the RAN 120. Thereby, the GGSN 225Bstores the current SGSN address of the target UE and its associatedprofile in a location register (e.g., within a PDP context). The GGSN225B is responsible for IP address assignment and is the default routerfor a connected UE. The GGSN 225B also performs authentication andcharging functions.

The SGSN 220B is representative of one of many SGSNs within the corenetwork 140, in an example. Each SGSN is responsible for the delivery ofdata packets from and to the UEs within an associated geographicalservice area. The tasks of the SGSN 220B includes packet routing andtransfer, mobility management (e.g., attach/detach and locationmanagement), logical link management, and authentication and chargingfunctions. The location register of the SGSN 220B stores locationinformation (e.g., current cell, current VLR) and user profiles (e.g.,IMSI, PDP address(es) used in the packet data network) of all GPRS usersregistered with the SGSN 220B, for example, within one or more PDPcontexts for each user or UE. Thus, SGSNs 220B are responsible for (i)de-tunneling downlink GTP packets from the GGSN 225B, (ii) uplink tunnelIP packets toward the GGSN 225B, (iii) carrying out mobility managementas UEs move between SGSN service areas and (iv) billing mobilesubscribers. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art,aside from (i)-(iv), SGSNs configured for GSM/EDGE networks haveslightly different functionality as compared to SGSNs configured forW-CDMA networks.

The RAN 120 (e.g., or UTRAN, in UMTS system architecture) communicateswith the SGSN 220B via a Radio Access Network Application Part (RANAP)protocol. RANAP operates over a Iu interface (Iu-ps), with atransmission protocol such as Frame Relay or IP. The SGSN 220Bcommunicates with the GGSN 225B via a Gn interface, which is an IP-basedinterface between SGSN 220B and other SGSNs (not shown) and internalGGSNs (not shown), and uses the GTP protocol defined above (e.g., GTP-U,GTP-C, GTP′, etc.). In the embodiment of FIG. 2B, the Gn between theSGSN 220B and the GGSN 225B carries both the GTP-C and the GTP-U. Whilenot shown in FIG. 2B, the Gn interface is also used by the Domain NameSystem (DNS). The GGSN 225B is connected to a Public Data Network (PDN)(not shown), and in turn to the Internet 175, via a Gi interface with IPprotocols either directly or through a Wireless Application Protocol(WAP) gateway.

FIG. 2C illustrates another example configuration of the RAN 120 and apacket-switched portion of the core network 140 that is configured as aGPRS core network within a 3G UMTS W-CDMA system in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Similar to FIG. 2B, the core network 140includes the SGSN 220B and the GGSN 225B. However, in FIG. 2C, DirectTunnel is an optional function in Iu mode that allows the SGSN 220B toestablish a direct user plane tunnel, GTP-U, between the RAN 120 and theGGSN 225B within a PS domain. A Direct Tunnel capable SGSN, such as SGSN220B in FIG. 2C, can be configured on a per GGSN and per RNC basiswhether or not the SGSN 220B can use a direct user plane connection. TheSGSN 220B in FIG. 2C handles the control plane signaling and makes thedecision of when to establish Direct Tunnel When the RAB assigned for aPDP context is released (i.e. the PDP context is preserved) the GTP-Utunnel is established between the GGSN 225B and SGSN 220B in order to beable to handle the downlink packets.

FIG. 2D illustrates an example configuration of the RAN 120 and apacket-switched portion of the core network 140 based on an EvolvedPacket System (EPS) or LTE network, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. Referring to FIG. 2D, unlike the RAN 120 shown in FIGS.2B-2C, the RAN 120 in the EPS/LTE network is configured with a pluralityof Evolved Node Bs (ENodeBs or eNBs) 200D, 205D and 210D, without theRNC 215B from FIGS. 2B-2C. This is because ENodeBs in EPS/LTE networksdo not require a separate controller (i.e., the RNC 215B) within the RAN120 to communicate with the core network 140. In other words, some ofthe functionality of the RNC 215B from FIGS. 2B-2C is built into eachrespective eNodeB of the RAN 120 in FIG. 2D.

In FIG. 2D, the core network 140 includes a plurality of MobilityManagement Entities (MMEs) 215D and 220D, a Home Subscriber Server (HSS)225D, a Serving Gateway (S-GW) 230D, a Packet Data Network Gateway(P-GW) 235D and a Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) 240D.Network interfaces between these components, the RAN 120 and theInternet 175 are illustrated in FIG. 2D and are defined in Table 1(below) as follows:

TABLE 1 EPS/LTE Core Network Connection Definitions Network InterfaceDescription S1-MME Reference point for the control plane protocolbetween RAN 120 and MME 215D. S1-U Reference point between RAN 120 andS-GW 230D for the per bearer user plane tunneling and inter-eNodeB pathswitching during handover. S5 Provides user plane tunneling and tunnelmanagement between S- GW 230D and P-GW 235D. It is used for S-GWrelocation due to UE mobility and if the S-GW 230D needs to connect to anon- collocated P-GW for the required PDN connectivity. S6a Enablestransfer of subscription and authentication data forauthenticating/authorizing user access to the evolved system(Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting [AAA] interface) betweenMME 215D and HSS 225D. Gx Provides transfer of Quality of Service (QoS)policy and charging rules from PCRF 240D to Policy a ChargingEnforcement Function (PCEF) component (not shown) in the P-GW 235D. S8Inter-PLMN reference point providing user and control plane between theS-GW 230D in a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN) and the P-GW235D in a Home Public Land Mobile Network (HPLMN). S8 is the inter-PLMNvariant of S5. S10 Reference point between MMEs 215D and 220D for MMErelocation and MME to MME information transfer. S11 Reference pointbetween MME 215D and S-GW 230D. SGi Reference point between the P-GW235D and the packet data network, shown in FIG. 2D as the Internet 175.The Packet data network may be an operator external public or privatepacket data network or an intra-operator packet data network (e.g., forprovision of IMS services). This reference point corresponds to Gi for3GPP accesses. X2 Reference point between two different eNodeBs used forUE handoffs. Rx Reference point between the PCRF 240D and an applicationfunction (AF) that is used to exchanged application-level sessioninformation, where the AF is represented in FIG. 1 by the applicationserver 170.

A high-level description of the components shown in the RAN 120 and corenetwork 140 of FIG. 2D will now be described. However, these componentsare each well-known in the art from various 3GPP TS standards, and thedescription contained herein is not intended to be an exhaustivedescription of all functionalities performed by these components.

Referring to FIG. 2D, the MMEs 215D and 220D are configured to managethe control plane signaling for the EPS bearers. MME functions include:Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling, NAS signaling security, Mobilitymanagement for inter- and intra-technology handovers, P-GW and S-GWselection, and MME selection for handovers with MME change.

Referring to FIG. 2D, the S-GW 230D is the gateway that terminates theinterface toward the RAN 120. For each UE associated with the corenetwork 140 for an EPS-based system, at a given point of time, there isa single S-GW. The functions of the S-GW 230D, for both the GTP-basedand the Proxy Mobile IPv6 (PMIP)-based S5/S8, include: Mobility anchorpoint, Packet routing and forwarding, and setting the DiffServ CodePoint (DSCP) based on a QoS Class Identifier (QCI) of the associated EPSbearer.

Referring to FIG. 2D, the P-GW 235D is the gateway that terminates theSGi interface toward the Packet Data Network (PDN), e.g., the Internet175. If a UE is accessing multiple PDNs, there may be more than one P-GWfor that UE; however, a mix of S5/S8 connectivity and Gn/Gp connectivityis not typically supported for that UE simultaneously. P-GW functionsinclude for both the GTP-based S5/S8: Packet filtering (by deep packetinspection), UE IP address allocation, setting the DSCP based on the QCIof the associated EPS bearer, accounting for inter operator charging,uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) bearer binding as defined in 3GPP TS23.203, UL bearer binding verification as defined in 3GPP TS 23.203. TheP-GW 235D provides PDN connectivity to both GSM/EDGE Radio AccessNetwork (GERAN)/UTRAN only UEs and E-UTRAN-capable UEs using any ofE-UTRAN, GERAN, or UTRAN. The P-GW 235D provides PDN connectivity toE-UTRAN capable UEs using E-UTRAN only over the S5/S8 interface.

Referring to FIG. 2D, the PCRF 240D is the policy and charging controlelement of the EPS-based core network 140. In a non-roaming scenario,there is a single PCRF in the HPLMN associated with a UE's InternetProtocol Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. The PCRFterminates the Rx interface and the Gx interface. In a roaming scenariowith local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with aUE's IP-CAN session: A Home PCRF (H-PCRF) is a PCRF that resides withina HPLMN, and a Visited PCRF (V-PCRF) is a PCRF that resides within avisited VPLMN. PCRF is described in more detail in 3GPP TS 23.203, andas such will not be described further for the sake of brevity. In FIG.2D, the application server 170 (e.g., which can be referred to as the AFin 3GPP terminology) is shown as connected to the core network 140 viathe Internet 175, or alternatively to the PCRF 240D directly via an Rxinterface. Generally, the application server 170 (or AF) is an elementoffering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network(e.g. UMTS PS domain/GPRS domain resources/LTE PS data services). Oneexample of an application function is the Proxy-Call Session ControlFunction (P-CSCF) of the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) Core Network subsystem. The AF uses the Rx reference point to provide sessioninformation to the PCRF 240D. Any other application server offering IPdata services over cellular network can also be connected to the PCRF240D via the Rx reference point.

FIG. 2E illustrates an example of the RAN 120 configured as an enhancedHigh Rate Packet Data (HRPD) RAN connected to an EPS or LTE network 140Aand also a packet-switched portion of an HRPD core network 140B inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. The core network 140A isan EPS or LTE core network, similar to the core network described abovewith respect to FIG. 2D.

In FIG. 2E, the eHRPD RAN includes a plurality of base transceiverstations (BTSs) 200E, 205E and 210E, which are connected to an enhancedBSC (eBSC) and enhanced PCF (ePCF) 215E. The eBSC/ePCF 215E can connectto one of the MMEs 215D or 220D within the EPS core network 140A over anS101 interface, and to an HRPD serving gateway (HSGW) 220E over A10and/or A11 interfaces for interfacing with other entities in the EPScore network 140A (e.g., the S-GW 230D over an S103 interface, the P-GW235D over an S2a interface, the PCRF 240D over a Gxa interface, a 3GPPAAA server (not shown explicitly in FIG. 2D) over an STa interface,etc.). The HSGW 220E is defined in 3GPP2 to provide the interworkingbetween HRPD networks and EPS/LTE networks. As will be appreciated, theeHRPD RAN and the HSGW 220E are configured with interface functionalityto EPC/LTE networks that is not available in legacy HRPD networks.

Turning back to the eHRPD RAN, in addition to interfacing with theEPS/LTE network 140A, the eHRPD RAN can also interface with legacy HRPDnetworks such as HRPD network 140B. As will be appreciated the HRPDnetwork 140B is an example implementation of a legacy HRPD network, suchas the EV-DO network from FIG. 2A. For example, the eBSC/ePCF 215E caninterface with an authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA)server 225E via an A12 interface, or to a PDSN/FA 230E via an A10 or A11interface. The PDSN/FA 230E in turn connects to HA 235A, through whichthe Internet 175 can be accessed. In FIG. 2E, certain interfaces (e.g.,A13, A16, H1, H2, etc.) are not described explicitly but are shown forcompleteness and would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the artfamiliar with HRPD or eHRPD.

Referring to FIGS. 2B-2E, it will be appreciated that LTE core networks(e.g., FIG. 2D) and HRPD core networks that interface with eHRPD RANsand HSGWs (e.g., FIG. 2E) can support network-initiated Quality ofService (QoS) (e.g., by the P-GW, GGSN, SGSN, etc.) in certain cases.

FIG. 3 illustrates examples of UEs in accordance with embodiments of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 3, UE 300A is illustrated as a callingtelephone and UE 300B is illustrated as a touchscreen device (e.g., asmart phone, a tablet computer, etc.). As shown in FIG. 3, an externalcasing of UE 300A is configured with an antenna 305A, display 310A, atleast one button 315A (e.g., a PTT button, a power button, a volumecontrol button, etc.) and a keypad 320A among other components, as isknown in the art. Also, an external casing of UE 300B is configured witha touchscreen display 305B, peripheral buttons 310B, 315B, 320B and 325B(e.g., a power control button, a volume or vibrate control button, anairplane mode toggle button, etc.), at least one front-panel button 330B(e.g., a Home button, etc.), among other components, as is known in theart. While not shown explicitly as part of UE 300B, the UE 300B caninclude one or more external antennas and/or one or more integratedantennas that are built into the external casing of UE 300B, includingbut not limited to WiFi antennas, cellular antennas, satellite positionsystem (SPS) antennas (e.g., global positioning system (GPS) antennas),and so on.

While internal components of UEs such as the UEs 300A and 300B can beembodied with different hardware configurations, a basic high-level UEconfiguration for internal hardware components is shown as platform 302in FIG. 3. The platform 302 can receive and execute softwareapplications, data and/or commands transmitted from the RAN 120 that mayultimately come from the core network 140, the Internet 175 and/or otherremote servers and networks (e.g., application server 170, web URLs,etc.). The platform 302 can also independently execute locally storedapplications without RAN interaction. The platform 302 can include atransceiver 306 operably coupled to an application specific integratedcircuit (ASIC) 308, or other processor, microprocessor, logic circuit,or other data processing device. The ASIC 308 or other processorexecutes the application programming interface (API) 310 layer thatinterfaces with any resident programs in the memory 312 of the wirelessdevice. The memory 312 can be comprised of read-only or random-accessmemory (RAM and ROM), EEPROM, flash cards, or any memory common tocomputer platforms. The platform 302 also can include a local database314 that can store applications not actively used in memory 312, as wellas other data. The local database 314 is typically a flash memory cell,but can be any secondary storage device as known in the art, such asmagnetic media, EEPROM, optical media, tape, soft or hard disk, or thelike.

Accordingly, an embodiment of the invention can include a UE (e.g., UE300A, 300B, etc.) including the ability to perform the functionsdescribed herein. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art,the various logic elements can be embodied in discrete elements,software modules executed on a processor or any combination of softwareand hardware to achieve the functionality disclosed herein. For example,ASIC 308, memory 312, API 310 and local database 314 may all be usedcooperatively to load, store and execute the various functions disclosedherein and thus the logic to perform these functions may be distributedover various elements. Alternatively, the functionality could beincorporated into one discrete component. Therefore, the features of theUEs 300A and 300B in FIG. 3 are to be considered merely illustrative andthe invention is not limited to the illustrated features or arrangement.

The wireless communication between the UEs 300A and/or 300B and the RAN120 can be based on different technologies, such as CDMA, W-CDMA, timedivision multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access(FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), GSM, or otherprotocols that may be used in a wireless communications network or adata communications network. As discussed in the foregoing and known inthe art, voice transmission and/or data can be transmitted to the UEsfrom the RAN using a variety of networks and configurations.Accordingly, the illustrations provided herein are not intended to limitthe embodiments of the invention and are merely to aid in thedescription of aspects of embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a communication device 400 that includes logicconfigured to perform functionality. The communication device 400 cancorrespond to any of the above-noted communication devices, includingbut not limited to UEs 300A or 300B, any component of the RAN 120 (e.g.,BSs 200A through 210A, BSC 215A, Node Bs 200B through 210B, RNC 215B,eNodeBs 200D through 210D, etc.), any component of the core network 140(e.g., PCF 220A, PDSN 225A, SGSN 220B, GGSN 225B, MME 215D or 220D, HSS225D, S-GW 230D, P-GW 235D, PCRF 240D), any components coupled with thecore network 140 and/or the Internet 175 (e.g., the application server170), and so on. Thus, communication device 400 can correspond to anyelectronic device that is configured to communicate with (or facilitatecommunication with) one or more other entities over the wirelesscommunications system 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 4, the communication device 400 includes logicconfigured to receive and/or transmit information 405. In an example, ifthe communication device 400 corresponds to a wireless communicationsdevice (e.g., UE 300A or 300B, one of BSs 200A through 210A, one of NodeBs 200B through 210B, one of eNodeBs 200D through 210D, etc.), the logicconfigured to receive and/or transmit information 405 can include awireless communications interface (e.g., Bluetooth, WiFi, 2G, CDMA,W-CDMA, 3G, 4G, LTE, etc.) such as a wireless transceiver and associatedhardware (e.g., an RF antenna, a MODEM, a modulator and/or demodulator,etc.). In another example, the logic configured to receive and/ortransmit information 405 can correspond to a wired communicationsinterface (e.g., a serial connection, a USB or Firewire connection, anEthernet connection through which the Internet 175 can be accessed,etc.). Thus, if the communication device 400 corresponds to some type ofnetwork-based server (e.g., PDSN, SGSN, GGSN, S-GW, P-GW, MME, HSS,PCRF, the application 170, etc.), the logic configured to receive and/ortransmit information 405 can correspond to an Ethernet card, in anexample, that connects the network-based server to other communicationentities via an Ethernet protocol. In a further example, the logicconfigured to receive and/or transmit information 405 can includesensory or measurement hardware by which the communication device 400can monitor its local environment (e.g., an accelerometer, a temperaturesensor, a light sensor, an antenna for monitoring local RF signals,etc.). The logic configured to receive and/or transmit information 405can also include software that, when executed, permits the associatedhardware of the logic configured to receive and/or transmit information405 to perform its reception and/or transmission function(s). However,the logic configured to receive and/or transmit information 405 does notcorrespond to software alone, and the logic configured to receive and/ortransmit information 405 relies at least in part upon hardware toachieve its functionality.

Referring to FIG. 4, the communication device 400 further includes logicconfigured to process information 410. In an example, the logicconfigured to process information 410 can include at least a processor.Example implementations of the type of processing that can be performedby the logic configured to process information 410 includes but is notlimited to performing determinations, establishing connections, makingselections between different information options, performing evaluationsrelated to data, interacting with sensors coupled to the communicationdevice 400 to perform measurement operations, converting informationfrom one format to another (e.g., between different protocols such as.wmv to .avi, etc.), and so on. For example, the processor included inthe logic configured to process information 410 can correspond to ageneral purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, afield programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device,discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or anycombination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein.A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in thealternative, the processor may be any conventional processor,controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also beimplemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combinationof a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one ormore microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suchconfiguration. The logic configured to process information 410 can alsoinclude software that, when executed, permits the associated hardware ofthe logic configured to process information 410 to perform itsprocessing function(s). However, the logic configured to processinformation 410 does not correspond to software alone, and the logicconfigured to process information 410 relies at least in part uponhardware to achieve its functionality.

Referring to FIG. 4, the communication device 400 further includes logicconfigured to store information 415. In an example, the logic configuredto store information 415 can include at least a non-transitory memoryand associated hardware (e.g., a memory controller, etc.). For example,the non-transitory memory included in the logic configured to storeinformation 415 can correspond to RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory,EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, aCD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. The logicconfigured to store information 415 can also include software that, whenexecuted, permits the associated hardware of the logic configured tostore information 415 to perform its storage function(s). However, thelogic configured to store information 415 does not correspond tosoftware alone, and the logic configured to store information 415 reliesat least in part upon hardware to achieve its functionality.

Referring to FIG. 4, the communication device 400 further optionallyincludes logic configured to present information 420. In an example, thelogic configured to present information 420 can include at least anoutput device and associated hardware. For example, the output devicecan include a video output device (e.g., a display screen, a port thatcan carry video information such as USB, HDMI, etc.), an audio outputdevice (e.g., speakers, a port that can carry audio information such asa microphone jack, USB, HDMI, etc.), a vibration device and/or any otherdevice by which information can be formatted for output or actuallyoutputted by a user or operator of the communication device 400. Forexample, if the communication device 400 corresponds to UE 300A or UE300B as shown in FIG. 3, the logic configured to present information 420can include the display 310A of UE 300A or the touchscreen display 305Bof UE 300B. In a further example, the logic configured to presentinformation 420 can be omitted for certain communication devices, suchas network communication devices that do not have a local user (e.g.,network switches or routers, remote servers, etc.). The logic configuredto present information 420 can also include software that, whenexecuted, permits the associated hardware of the logic configured topresent information 420 to perform its presentation function(s).However, the logic configured to present information 420 does notcorrespond to software alone, and the logic configured to presentinformation 420 relies at least in part upon hardware to achieve itsfunctionality.

Referring to FIG. 4, the communication device 400 further optionallyincludes logic configured to receive local user input 425. In anexample, the logic configured to receive local user input 425 caninclude at least a user input device and associated hardware. Forexample, the user input device can include buttons, a touchscreendisplay, a keyboard, a camera, an audio input device (e.g., a microphoneor a port that can carry audio information such as a microphone jack,etc.), and/or any other device by which information can be received froma user or operator of the communication device 400. For example, if thecommunication device 400 corresponds to UE 300A or UE 300B as shown inFIG. 3, the logic configured to receive local user input 425 can includethe keypad 320A, any of the buttons 315A or 310B through 325B, thetouchscreen display 305B, etc. In a further example, the logicconfigured to receive local user input 425 can be omitted for certaincommunication devices, such as network communication devices that do nothave a local user (e.g., network switches or routers, remote servers,etc.). The logic configured to receive local user input 425 can alsoinclude software that, when executed, permits the associated hardware ofthe logic configured to receive local user input 425 to perform itsinput reception function(s). However, the logic configured to receivelocal user input 425 does not correspond to software alone, and thelogic configured to receive local user input 425 relies at least in partupon hardware to achieve its functionality.

Referring to FIG. 4, while the configured logics of 405 through 425 areshown as separate or distinct blocks in FIG. 4, it will be appreciatedthat the hardware and/or software by which the respective configuredlogic performs its functionality can overlap in part. For example, anysoftware used to facilitate the functionality of the configured logicsof 405 through 425 can be stored in the non-transitory memory associatedwith the logic configured to store information 415, such that theconfigured logics of 405 through 425 each performs their functionality(i.e., in this case, software execution) based in part upon theoperation of software stored by the logic configured to storeinformation 415. Likewise, hardware that is directly associated with oneof the configured logics can be borrowed or used by other configuredlogics from time to time. For example, the processor of the logicconfigured to process information 410 can format data into anappropriate format before being transmitted by the logic configured toreceive and/or transmit information 405, such that the logic configuredto receive and/or transmit information 405 performs its functionality(i.e., in this case, transmission of data) based in part upon theoperation of hardware (i.e., the processor) associated with the logicconfigured to process information 410.

Generally, unless stated otherwise explicitly, the phrase “logicconfigured to” as used throughout this disclosure is intended to invokean embodiment that is at least partially implemented with hardware, andis not intended to map to software-only implementations that areindependent of hardware. Also, it will be appreciated that theconfigured logic or “logic configured to” in the various blocks are notlimited to specific logic gates or elements, but generally refer to theability to perform the functionality described herein (either viahardware or a combination of hardware and software). Thus, theconfigured logics or “logic configured to” as illustrated in the variousblocks are not necessarily implemented as logic gates or logic elementsdespite sharing the word “logic.” Other interactions or cooperationbetween the logic in the various blocks will become clear to one ofordinary skill in the art from a review of the embodiments describedbelow in more detail.

Sessions that operate over networks such as 1x EV-DO in FIG. 2A,UMTS-based W-CDMA in FIGS. 2B-2C, LTE in FIG. 2D and eHRPD in FIG. 2Ecan be supported on channels (e.g. RABs, flows, etc.) for which aguaranteed quality level is reserved, which is referred to as Quality ofService (QoS). For example, establishing a given level of QoS on aparticular channel may provide one or more of a minimum guaranteed bitrate (GBR) on that channel, a maximum delay, jitter, latency, bit errorrate (BER), and so on. QoS resources can be reserved (or setup) forchannels associated with real-time or streaming communication sessions,such as Voice-over IP (VoIP) sessions, group communication sessions(e.g., PTT sessions, etc.), online games, IP TV, and so on, to helpensure seamless end-to-end packet transfer for these sessions.

Conventionally, when a QoS bearer is setup or activated for acommunication session associated with a particular application (e.g.,VoIP, PTT, etc.), denoted herein as App*, QoS is setup on both uplinkand downlink channels for the entire duration of the communicationsession. However, as will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in theart, a client application on a given UE participating in the App*communication session may not have high-priority traffic to transmitand/or receive on both the uplink and downlink channels for thecommunication sessions continuously and/or concurrently.

For example, in a half-duplex App* communication session (e.g., a 1:1 ordirect call, or a group call such as PTT), a floorholder may havehigh-priority traffic to transmit on the uplink channel (i.e., to thenon-floorholders), but the floorholder will not typically havehigh-priority traffic to receive on the downlink channel due to thehalf-duplex nature of the App* session. Similarly, in the half-duplexApp* communication session noted above, non-floorholder(s) may havehigh-priority traffic to receive on the downlink channel (i.e., from thefloorholder), but the non-floorholder(s) will not typically havehigh-priority traffic to transmit on the uplink channel due to thehalf-duplex nature of the App* session. Further, during a half-duplexApp* session, there are times when no one holds the floor (e.g., nohigh-priority traffic in either direction, except for floor-requests).Turning to full-duplex App* communication sessions (e.g., a 1:1 ordirect call), a given party in the call may have their session muted ormay simply not be talking, so that the given party does not havehigh-priority traffic to transmit on the uplink channel. As will beappreciated, during at least a portion of the half-duplex or full-duplexApp* sessions noted above, reserving QoS for the respective sessionparticipant in both directions (i.e., uplink and downlink) continuouslythroughout the App* communication session can be inefficient, becauseeach QoS reservation reduces the overall resource capacity of the system100.

Accordingly, embodiments of the invention relate to selectivelyincreasing or decreasing an allocation of QoS resources to uplink and/ordownlink channels for an App* communication session in a dynamic mannerbased on a direction (e.g., uplink and/or downlink) that high-prioritytraffic is expected to flow (or is actually flowing) during the App*communication session. In particular, the embodiments of the inventiondescribed below are directed to QoS-based communication sessions thatare configured to be arbitrated by the application server 170 across oneor more of the core networks shown in FIGS. 2A through 2E above.

For example, in a case where the QoS-based App* communication sessionscorrespond to VoIP sessions that are mediated between one or more UEsover the 1x EV-DO core network shown in FIG. 2A, each VoIP sessionmanaged by the application server 170 may be associated with three (3)flows that are potentially allocated QoS (i.e., a call setup signalingflow, an incall signaling flow and a media traffic flow). The 1x EV-DOcore network does not recognize GBR QoS as a reservable parameter, suchthat QoS setup for EV-DO is implemented at the RAN 120.

In another example, in a case where the QoS-based App* communicationsessions correspond to VoIP sessions that are mediated between one ormore UEs over a UMTS-based W-CDMA core network as shown in FIG. 2B orFIG. 2C, each VoIP session can be configured with an ‘Interactive’traffic class QoS and can receive the GBR QoS at the RAN 120 (i.e., theUTRAN) and over the air-interface by configuring the MAC-es/MAC-hs GBR,and, using non-scheduled Transmission Grant for UL. Similar to theexample above related to the 1x EV-DO core network, the GBR QoSresources are not reserved and cannot be configured in the W-CDMA corenetwork of FIGS. 2B-2C for the “Interactive” traffic class (only the RAN120) because the W-CDMA core network does not recognize GBR QoS as areservable parameter, such that only the logical connections aremaintained. Alternatively, when the “Conversational” traffic class isused instead of the “Interactive” traffic class, GBR QoS resources canbe negotiated/modified by both the UE and the W-CDMA core network.Typically, VoIP sessions use the “Conversational” traffic class inW-CDMA.

In another example, in a case where the QoS-based App* communicationsessions correspond to VoIP sessions that are mediated between one ormore UEs over the LTE core network shown in FIG. 2D, the VoIP sessionsmanaged by the application server 170 use a QoS Class Identifier (QCI)of “1” or an application-specific QCI for the App* GBR QoS bearer(denoted as QCI_(App)*) on a dedicated application-specific PDNconnection (denoted as PDN_(App)*), and requires the S5 connectioneither to be maintained even when the UE is in an RRC-Idle state or tobe quickly setup after an RRC Idle-to-Connected transition. Accordingly,unlike the 1x EV-DO core network of FIG. 2A and the W-CDMA core networkof FIGS. 2B-2C, the LTE core network of FIG. 2D thereby supports GBR QoSat the core network 140 in addition to the RAN 120.

The embodiments of the invention which will be described in more detailbelow are each configured for operation within one or more of the corenetworks from FIGS. 2A-2B, as summarized in Table 2 (below) as follows:

TABLE 2 Overview of Embodiment Applicability to Core Network Types EV-DOEmbodiment Embodiment W- (Legacy Name Description LTE CDMA HRPD) eHRPD#1-Client Application on the UE Yes Yes [for Yes Yes Application basedon the type of call Conver- initiated (half duplex or full sationaldirectional duplex) and the activity of Traffic QoS the call (flooropen, floor Class] management active, audio muted, etc) [FIGS. 5-requests the Network to 6C] turn off /modify (increase or decrease) GBRQoS flows directionally (UL or DL) #2- Application server based yes NoNo No Application on the type of call (half Server duplex or fullduplex) and assisted the activity of the call directional (floor open,floor active, QoS audio muted, etc) requests manage- the Network to turnoff/ ment modify (increase or [FIGS. 7A- decrease) GBR QoS flows 7B]directionally (UL or DL) for each UE in the call

FIG. 5 illustrates a more detailed implementation example of a clientapplication initiated directional QoS management procedure in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention. As explained in Table 2 (above),the client application initiated directional QoS management procedure(i.e., #1 from Table 2) can be implemented in the 1x EV-DO core networkof FIG. 2A, the W-CDMA core network of FIGS. 2B-2C (if the“Conversational” traffic class is used for the session), LTE corenetwork of FIG. 2D and/or the eHRPD core network of FIG. 2E. FIG. 5 isgeneric to any of these core network types, whereas FIGS. 6A-6C showmore detailed flowcharts for mapping the procedure of FIG. 5 to theindividual core network types.

Referring to FIG. 5, a client application for App* on the given UEdetermines to initiate an App* communication session (e.g., a VoIPsession, a PTT session, etc.), 500. The determination of 500 can bebased upon a request by an operator of the given UE to originate thecommunication session, in which case the given UE is an originating UE.Alternatively, the determination of 500 can be based upon a callannounce message received at the given UE that announces the App*communication session originated by some other entity, in which case thegiven UE is a target UE. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, assume that theApp* client application that is executing on the given UE and isconfigured to handle client-side operations associated with App*communication sessions (e.g., VoIP sessions, PTT sessions, etc.).

At 505, the App* client application determines whether the App*communication session to be initiated is half-duplex or full-duplex. Ifthe App* client application determines that the App* communicationsession is half-duplex at 505 (e.g., a PTT call), the App* clientapplication determines whether the given UE currently has the floor (oris the current floorholder) for the half-duplex App* session, 510. Ifthe App* client application determines that the given UE has the floorat 510, the App* client application determines whether a threshold levelof uplink (UL) QoS resources (e.g., GBR set to a threshold date rate orkpbs) are established for supporting uplink media transmissions by thegiven UE for the half-duplex App* session, 515. As will be appreciated,the floorholder for the half-duplex App* session is likely to betransmitting high-priority media on a UL channel for distribution totarget UE(s) participating in the half-duplex App* session asnon-floorholders or listeners, such that QoS on the UL channel from thefloorholder can improve session quality for the half-duplex App*session. As will be explained in more detail below with respect to FIGS.6A-6C, the uplink QoS resource determination of 515 can include (i) ifthe given UE is served by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2A or an eHRPDnetwork as in FIG. 2E, determining whether QoS for a UL media trafficflow is setup, (ii) if the given UE is served by a W-CDMA network as inFIGS. 2B-2C or an LTE network as in FIG. 2D, whether a UL media beareris configured with at least a threshold GBR for supporting thehalf-duplex session.

If the App* client application on the given UE determines that thethreshold UL QoS resources are not already setup for the half-duplexApp* session at 515, the given UE requests that UL QoS resources beactivated and/or increased at 520. For example, if the given UE isserved by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2A, the given UE can requestthat QoS for the UL media traffic flow be activated at 520. In anotherexample, if the given UE is served by a W-CDMA network as in FIGS. 2B-2Cor an LTE network as in FIG. 2D, the given UE can request to modify itscurrent GBR on its UL media bearer to a higher GBR (e.g., X_(App)* kpbs,where X_(App)* kpbs corresponds to an application-specific dynamic datarate for App* communication sessions) at 520.

Further, if the given UE is determined to have the floor for thehalf-duplex App* session at 510, it will be appreciated that the givenUE may not require QoS for downlink (DL) media. Accordingly, in additionto selectively setting up or increasing QoS for the UL channel (ifnecessary) at 515-520, the given UE will also selectively tear down orreduce existing QoS resources for the DL channel (if necessary) for theApp* bearer at 525-530. Thus, the App* client application determineswhether a threshold level of DL QoS resources are established forsupporting DL media reception at the given UE for the half-duplex App*session, 525. As will be explained in more detail below with respect toFIGS. 6A-6C, the DL QoS resource determination of 525 can include (i) ifthe given UE is served by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2A or an eHRPDnetwork as in FIG. 2E, determining whether QoS for a DL media trafficflow is setup, (ii) if the given UE is served by a W-CDMA network as inFIGS. 2B-2C or an LTE network as in FIG. 2D, whether a DL App* mediabearer is configured with at least a threshold GBR.

If the App* client application on the given UE determines that thethreshold DL QoS resources are already setup for the half-duplex App*session at 525, the App* client application on the given UE requeststhat the DL QoS resources be deactivated and/or decreased at 530. Forexample, if the given UE is served by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2Aor an eHRPD network as in FIG. 2E, the given UE can request that QoS forthe DL media traffic flow be deactivated or turned off at 530. Inanother example, if the given UE is served by a W-CDMA network as inFIGS. 2B-2C or an LTE network as in FIG. 2D, the App* client applicationon the given UE can request to modify its current GBR on its DL mediabearer to a lower GBR at 530.

Still referring to FIG. 5, and turning back to the half-duplexfloorholder determination of 510, if the App* client applicationdetermines that the given UE does not have the floor at 510, the App*client application determines whether another session participant holdsthe floor (i.e., whether media from some entity is being received overthe DL channel for the half-duplex App* session), 535. As will beappreciated, non-floorholders (or target UEs) for the half-duplex App*session are likely to be receiving high-priority media on a DL, suchthat QoS on the DL channel for the non-floorholders or target UE(s) canimprove session quality for the half-duplex App* session. Accordingly,if the App* client application determines that another entity holds thefloor at 535 (i.e., media is being received at the given UE for thehalf-duplex App* session), the App* client application determineswhether a threshold level of DL QoS resources is established forsupporting DL media reception at the given UE for the half-duplexsession, 540 (similar to 525).

If the App* client application on the given UE determines that thethreshold DL QoS resources is not already setup for the half-duplex App*session at 540, the App* client application on the given UE requeststhat DL QoS resources be activated and/or increased at 545. For example,if the given UE is served by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2A or aneHRPD network as in FIG. 2E, the given UE can request that QoS for theDL media traffic flow be activated at 545. In another example, if thegiven UE is served by a W-CDMA network as in FIGS. 2B-2C or an LTEnetwork as in FIG. 2D, the App* client application on the given UE canrequest to modify its current GBR on its DL media bearer to a higher GBR(e.g., X_(App)* kpbs) at 545.

Further, if the given UE is determined not to have the floor for thehalf-duplex App* session at 510, it will be appreciated that the givenUE may not require QoS for UL media. Accordingly, in addition toselectively setting up QoS for the DL channel (if necessary) at 540-545,the given UE will also selectively tear down or reduce existing QoSresources for the UL channel (if necessary) at 550-555. Thus, the App*client application determines whether a threshold level of UL QoSresources are established for supporting UL media reception at the givenUE for the half-duplex session, 550 (similar to 520).

If the App* client application on the given UE determines that thethreshold UL QoS resources are already setup for the half-duplex App*session at 550, the given UE requests that the UL QoS resources bedeactivated and/or decreased at 555. For example, if the given UE isserved by a 1x EV-DO network as in FIG. 2A or an eHRPD network as inFIG. 2E, the App* client application on the given UE can request thatQoS for the UL media traffic flow be deactivated or turned off at 555.In another example, if the given UE is served by a W-CDMA network as inFIGS. 2B-2C or an LTE network as in FIG. 2D, the App* client applicationon the given UE can request to modify its current GBR on its UL mediabearer to a lower GBR (e.g., 1 kpbs, or some other nominal data rate) at555.

Still referring to FIG. 5, and turning back to the determination of 535whereby the App* client application determines whether anotherfloorholder is present after determining that the given UE itself doesnot hold the floor at 510, if the App* client application determinesthat no one holds the floor at 535, the App* client applicationdetermines to decrease or deactivate both DL and UL QoS resources forthe half-duplex App* session (at least, until one of the sessionparticipants is granted the floor), 560. Accordingly, after 560, theprocess advances to both 525-530 and 550-555, where the DL and UL QoSresources are decreased and/or deactivated (if necessary).

Still referring to FIG. 5, and turning back to the duplex determinationof 505, if the App* client application determines that the communicationsession is full-duplex (e.g., a VoIP call) instead of half-duplex, theApp* client application determines whether audio is muted for thefull-duplex App* session, 565. As will be appreciated, if audio ismuted, the operator of the given UE is listening to the other UE(s) inthe full-duplex App* session but does not actually want his/her ownaudio conveyed to the other UE(s). If the App* client applicationdetermines that the full-duplex App* session is not muted at 565, bothUL and DL QoS resources for the full-duplex App* session are activatedor increased (if necessary), 570. For example, 570 can correspond to anexecution of 515-520 and 550-555, in an example. Otherwise, if the App*client application determines that the full-duplex App* session is mutedat 565, the process advances to 540-555 where the DL QoS resources areincreased or activated (if necessary) and the UL QoS resources aredecreased or deactivated (if necessary).

FIG. 6A illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that joins a half-duplex App* PTT session while beingserved by a 1x EV-DO network (Legacy HRPD) as in FIG. 2A or an eHRPDnetwork as in FIG. 2E in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.Referring to FIG. 6A, while the given UE is in an idle state, the App*client application determines to originate the App* PTT call, 600A(e.g., in response to a PTT button push), and the App*client applicationdetermines that the given UE has the floor, 605A (e.g., similar to500-515 in FIG. 5). Assuming that the given UE does not yet have QoSsetup for its UL media flow for the App* PTT call, the App* clientapplication on the given UE requests QoS activation for its UL mediaflow but not the DL media flow for the App* PTT call. This is shown inFIG. 6A whereby the given UE transmits a ReservationOnRequest messagethat indicates the UL media QoS flow (and not the DL media QoS flow),615A, Thus, the RAN 120 sets up the UL QoS reservation for the UL mediaflow (shown by the signaling between 620A through 640A, which will bereadily understood by one of ordinary skill in the art familiar with 1xEV-DO) while leaving the DL QoS reservation for the DL media flow in asuspended state (e.g., similar to 515-530 of FIG. 5). While not shownexplicitly in FIG. 6A, the App* client application on the given UE canbegin transmitting media as the floorholder after 640A.

Referring to FIG. 6A, the App* client application on the given UEeventually releases the floor, 645A, and the App* client applicationdetermines that another UE has the floor for the App* PTT session, 650A(similar to 510 and 535 of FIG. 5). Accordingly, the given UE turns onthe DL QoS reservation for the DL media flow (655A-660A) and the givenUE tears down the UL QoS reservation for the UL media flow (665A-670A),similar to 540-555 of FIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 6A, the other UE eventually releases the floor, 675A,and the App* client application determines that no UE has the floor forthe App* PTT session, 680A (similar to 535 and 560 of FIG. 5).Accordingly, the App* client application on the given UE tears down boththe DL QoS reservation for the DL media flow and the UL QoS reservationfor the UL media flow (680A-690A), similar to 525-530 and 550-555 ofFIG. 5.

While FIG. 6A is directed to an example where the given UE is theoriginator for the App* PTT call, it will be appreciated that FIG. 6Acould be modified to accommodate a scenario where the given UE is a calltarget for the App* PTT call instead. In a call target implementation ofFIG. 6A, the App* client application on the call target UE becomes awareof the App* PTT call via a call announcement message (instead of a PTTbutton push as in 600A), and the call target UE will begin the App* PTTcall as a non-floorholder (instead of a floorholder as in FIG. 6A).Other than these differences, the UL and DL QoS for the App* Media QoSflow can be managed for the call target UE in a similar manner as inFIG. 6A. Also, while not shown explicitly in FIG. 6A, FIG. 6A could beexpanded so as to cover additional use cases from FIG. 5, such as afull-duplex example (e.g., 565, 570, etc., from FIG. 5) instead of thehalf-duplex session example in FIG. 6B. Further, while FIG. 6A isdescribed with the App* PTT call being originated at 600A when the givenUE is idle (i.e., no traffic channel (TCH)), it will be appreciated thatFIG. 6A could be modified so that the App* PTT call is originated at thegiven UE while the given UE is already allocated a TCH (or announced tothe given UE over the pre-established TCH, a target UE implementation).

FIG. 6B illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that joins a half-duplex App* PTT session while beingserved by a W-CDMA network as in FIG. 2B or FIG. 2C in accordance withan embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 6B, the given UE isoperating in CELL_PCH or URA_PCH state, 600B, and the App* clientapplication receives a page in association with a App* PTT calloriginated by some other UE, 605B (e.g., in response to a PTT buttonpush at the other UE), which prompts the given UE to perform cell updateprocedures with the RAN 120, 610B, so as to transition into CELL_DCHstate, 615B, to receive the PTT announce message (not shown) and tosetup RABs for the App* PTT session, 620B. In particular, at 620B, theRAN 120 allocates at least a threshold GBR (e.g., X_(App)* kpbs) on boththe UL and DL for the media RAB that will support the App* PTT session.

Referring to FIG. 6B, assume that the App* client application determinesthat another UE has the floor for the App* PTT session, 625B (similar to510 and 535 of FIG. 5). Accordingly, because the given UE was alreadyallocated the threshold GBR at 620B, the App* client applicationdetermines to maintain the GBR allocated to the DL media bearer atX_(App)* kpbs, but to reduce the GBR allocated to the UL media bearer(e.g., to 1 kpbs or some other nominal level), similar to 540-555 ofFIG. 5. The GBR reduction to the UL media bearer is shown in FIG. 6B inthe signaling between 630B through 670B, and this signaling will bereadily understood by one of ordinary skill in the art familiar withUMTS and/or W-CDMA.

While FIG. 6B is directed to an example where the given UE is a calltarget UE for the App* PTT call, it will be appreciated that FIG. 6Bcould be modified to accommodate a scenario where the given UE is a calloriginator of the App* PTT call instead. In a call originatorimplementation of FIG. 6B, the App* client application on the calloriginator UE can become aware of the App* PTT call via a PTT buttonpush (instead of a page/announce procedure as in 605B), and the calloriginator UE will begin the App* PTT call as a floorholder (instead ofa non-floorholder as in FIG. 6B). Other than these differences, the ULand DL QoS for the App* Media QoS flow can be managed for the calltarget UE in a similar manner as in FIG. 6B. Also, while not shownexplicitly in FIG. 6B, FIG. 6B could be expanded so as to coveradditional use cases from FIG. 5, such as a full-duplex example (e.g.,565, 570, etc., from FIG. 5) instead of the half-duplex session examplein FIG. 6B. Further, while FIG. 6B is described with the App* PTT callbeing originated at 605B based on a page received while the given UE isin URA_PCH/CELL_PCH state, it will be appreciated that FIG. 6B could bemodified so that the App* PTT call the call announcement for the App*PTT session arrives while the given UE is already in CELL_DCH state (ora PTT button push for App* is detected at the given UE while in CELL_DCHstate, for an originating UE implementation).

FIG. 6C illustrates an example implementation of the process of FIG. 5for a given UE that originates a half-duplex App* PTT session whilebeing served by an LTE network as in FIG. 2D in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 6C, the given UE isoperating in a Radio Resource Connected (RRC) idle mode, 600C, and theApp* client application determines to initiate a half-duplex App*PTTsession (e.g., in response to a PTT button push on the given UE), 605C.The given UE then performs an RCC connection setup and service requestprocedures with the RAN 120 (i.e., an eNodeB serving the given UE, suchas eNodeB 205D), 610C, so as to transition into RCC Connected state,615C, and to setup non-GBR EPS bearers and a dedicated GBR EPS bearerfor the media of the half-duplex App*PTT session, 620C. In particular,at 620C, the eNodeB 205D allocates a at least a threshold GBR (e.g.,X_(App)* kpbs) on both the UL and DL for the App* GBR media bearer thatwill support the App* PTT session based on the QoS received from the MME215B.

Referring to FIG. 6C, assume that the App* client application determinesthat the given UE will begin the half-duplex App* PTT session with thefloor, 625C (e.g., similar to 500-515 in FIG. 5). Because the given UEalready has QoS setup for its UL media bearer (e.g., the X_(App)* kpbsof GBR allocated to the UL media bearer by the eNodeB 205D at 620C), theApp* client application on the given UE requests QoS reduction for theDL media bearer from X_(App)* kpbs to a kpbs level below the GBRthreshold (e.g., a nominal kpbs level, such as 1 kpbs). The GBRreduction to the DL media bearer is shown in FIG. 6C in the signalingbetween 630C and 665C, and this signaling will be readily understood byone of ordinary skill in the art familiar with LTE.

While FIG. 6C is directed to an example where the given UE is theoriginator for the App* PTT call, it will be appreciated that FIG. 6Acould be modified to accommodate a scenario where the given UE is a calltarget for the App* PTT call instead. In a call target implementation ofFIG. 6C, the App* client application on the call target UE becomes awareof the App* PTT call via a call announcement message (instead of a PTTbutton push as in 605C), and the call target UE will begin the App* PTTcall as a non-floorholder (instead of a floorholder as in FIG. 6C).Other than these differences, the UL and DL QoS for the App* Media QoSflow can be managed for the call target UE in a similar manner as inFIG. 6C. Also, while not shown explicitly in FIG. 6C, FIG. 6C could beexpanded so as to cover additional use cases from FIG. 5, such as afull-duplex example (e.g., 565, 570, etc., from FIG. 5) instead of thehalf-duplex session example in FIG. 6C. Further, while FIG. 6C isdescribed with the App* PTT call being originated at 605C when the givenUE is in RCC-Idle state, it will be appreciated that FIG. 6C could bemodified so that the App* PTT call is originated at the given UE whilein RRC-Connected state (or announced to the given UE while inRRC-Connected state, for a target UE implementation).

While FIGS. 5-6C are described with respect to a UE-side or clientapplication-based procedure for selective QoS control on the UL and DLchannels of an App* communication session, FIGS. 7A-7B are directed to asimilar selective QoS control procedure that is implemented at theapplication server 170 (e.g., the server configured to arbitrate theApp* communication session) instead of the UEs participating in the App*communication session. As explained in Table 2 (above), the applicationserver assisted directional QoS management procedure (i.e., #2 fromTable 2) can be implemented in the LTE core network of FIG. 2D, but maynot be capable of standard-compliant implementation in the 1x EV-DO corenetwork of FIG. 2A, or the W-CDMA core network of FIGS. 2B-2C, or theeHRPD network of FIG. 2E.

To condense the description of FIG. 7A, 700 through 770 of FIG. 7A issimilar to 500 through 570 of FIG. 5, respectively, except as notedhereafter. FIG. 5 in its entirety is implemented at a given UEparticipating in an App* communication session, whereas FIG. 7A isimplemented at the application server 170 configured to arbitrate theApp* communication session. FIG. 5 is representative of a procedureexecuted by an App* client application at one particular UE, whereasFIG. 7A is representative of a procedure that can be executed at theapplication server 170 for each UE participating in the communicationsession (although, the application server 170 need not perform theprocess of FIG. 7A for each of the participating UEs in at least oneembodiment). While the App* client application on the given UE in FIG. 5may determine to initiate the App* communication session at 500 of FIG.5 based upon a user request or receipt of a call announce message at thegiven UE, the application server 170 at 700 of FIG. 7A may determine toinitiate the App* communication session based upon receipt of a callrequest message from an originating UE and/or a call accept message fromtarget UE(s) that indicates acceptance to an announced App*communication session. Further, it will be appreciated that some UEs ina full-duplex App* session may have their sessions muted, and others maynot, and that some UEs may be floorholders to a half-duplex App*session, and other UEs may be non-floorholders. Thus, the variousdecision blocks shown in FIG. 7A may result in different proceduralpathways being taken for each of the UEs being evaluated by theapplication server 170. Finally, because the FIG. 7A procedure isrelevant to LTE, the various QoS evaluations and modifications shown inFIG. 7A may map to LTE specific core network elements. For example, therequest at 720 to increase the UL QoS for the App* GBR QoS bearer maycorrespond to a request issued from the application server 170 to thePCRF 240D or P-GW 235D to raise the UL GBR on the App* GBR QoS bearer toX_(App)* kpbs, the request at 730 to decrease the DL QoS on the App* GBRQoS bearer may correspond to a request issued from the applicationserver 170 to the PCRF 240D or P-GW 235D to decrease the DL GBR on theApp* GBR QoS bearer to a kpbs below a GBR threshold (e.g., 1 kpbs orsome other nominal data rate), and so on. Aside from these differences,the remaining operation of FIG. 7A is similar to FIG. 5, and an LTEimplementation of FIG. 7A could be similar to FIG. 6C except for certainoperations being moved from the given UE to the application server 170(and potentially being performed for more UEs). 700B through 770B ofFIG. 7B illustrates an even more detailed implementation of 700 through770 of FIG. 7A, respectively, whereby LTE-specific components andmessages are referenced.

FIG. 7C illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 7B within an LTEnetwork for a given UE (either a call originator or call target) joininga half-duplex App* PTT session in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 7C, the application server 170 determinesto setup the half-duplex App* PTT call for the given UE, 700C (e.g., asin 700B and 705B of FIG. 7B), and the application server 170 determinesthat the given UE has the floor, and thereby sets a max bit rate (MBR)for the UL App* GBR bearer has the floor sets a DL GBR equal to a lowkpbs, such as 1 kpbs, 705C (e.g., as in 710B through 730B of FIG. 7B).With these assumptions in mind, the signaling of 710C through 760C showsan LTE-specific example of how the UL and DL App* GBR bearer settingscan be implemented. At 715C, for instance, the PCRF 240D is shown to bethe LTE core network component that executes logic to map a MBS providedby the application server 170 into a suitable GBR value for achievingthe designated MBS, which is denoted herein as X_(App)*. Also, thesignaling shown between 725 through 750C covers the scenario where theApp* GBR bearer is already setup on the UL and DL, and also the scenariowhere the App* GBR bearer is not already setup. If the App* GBR beareris already setup, then the UL App* GBR bearer stays at X_(App)* kpbswhile the DL App* GBR bearer is reduced to 1 kpbs (or some other nominalkpbs) via an Update Bearer Request message at 725C. If the App* GBRbearer is not already setup, then the UL App* GBR bearer is setup forX_(App)* kpbs while the DL App* GBR bearer is set to the nominal kpbsvia a Create Bearer Request message at 725C. Likewise, a Bearer SetupRequest message is used at 730C if the App* GBR bearer is not yet setup,and a Bearer Modify Request message is used at 730C if the App* GBRbearer is already setup. Likewise, a Create Bearer Response message isused at 750C if the App* GBR bearer is not yet setup, and an UpdateBearer Response message is used at 750C if the App* GBR bearer isalready setup. The remaining signaling shown in FIG. 7C is independentof the starting status of the App* GBR bearer, and will be readyunderstood by one of ordinary skill in the art familiar with LTE. WhileFIG. 7C is specific to a half-duplex PTT session, it will be readilyappreciated how FIG. 7C could be modified to accommodate full-duplexsessions or half-duplex sessions other than PTT.

FIG. 8A illustrates a more detailed implementation example of a corenetwork initiated directional QoS management procedure in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention. As explained in Table 2 (above),the core network initiated directional QoS management procedure (i.e.,#3 from Table 2) can be implemented in the W-CDMA core network of FIGS.2B-2C (if the “Conversational” traffic class is used for the session)and/or the LTE core network of FIG. 2D, but may not be capable ofstandard-compliant implementation in the 1x EV-DO core network of FIG.2A or the eHRPD network of FIG. 2E. For example, in a W-CDMA or UMTSimplementation, the GGSN 225B or SGSN 220B may perform the process ofFIG. 8A, and in an LTE implementation, the P-GW 235D or S-GW 230D mayperform the process of FIG. 8A.

Referring to FIG. 8A, in response to detection of setup of a GBR mediabearer for an App* communication session (e.g., a half-duplex session, afull-duplex session, etc.), the core network 140 starts data inactivitytimers that monitor UL and DL traffic on the App* GBR media bearer, 800.In either case, as will be explained below, the data inactivity timersbegin running once the App* GBR media bearer is activated for the App*session.

At 805, the core network 140 determines whether UL or DL traffic isdetected on the App* GBR media bearer for the communication session. Inparticular, the core network 140 determines whether App* trafficassociated with an access point name (APN) for the App* communicationsession (i.e., App*_(APN)) is detected in the UL or DL direction at 805.If UL or DL traffic is detected by the core network 140 at 805, thetraffic inactivity timer for each direction (UL and/or DL) on which thetraffic was detected is reset, 810. At 815, for each direction (ULand/or DL) in which traffic inactivity timers are still running (i.e.,not yet expired), the core network 140 determines whether a thresholdGBR is already setup for the App* GBR media bearer in the respectivedirection (e.g., similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550 of FIG. 5). If not,the core network 140 increases the GBR (e.g., to X_(App)* kpbs) in eachdirection (UL or DL) for which the associated traffic inactivity timeris still running that does not yet have the threshold GBR, 820. As willbe appreciated, the UE can be notified with respect to the QoSadjustment (or GBR increase) of 820 via an end-to-end communication, asshown below in FIG. 8C between 855C-890C and/or in FIG. 8D between850D-865D.

Referring to FIG. 8A, the core network 140 monitors the UL and DLtraffic inactivity timers to determine whether the UL and DL trafficinactivity timers expire, 825. If expiration is detected at 825, thecore network 140 determines whether a threshold GBR is already setup forthe App* GBR media bearer in the respective direction for whichexpiration is detected, 830 (e.g., similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550 ofFIG. 5). If so, the core network 140 decreases the GBR (e.g., to 1 kpbsor some other nominal level) in each direction (UL or DL) for whichexpiration is detected that has the threshold GBR, 835, after which thecore network 140 monitors (805) whether new traffic arrives on thedirectional channel that was decreased at 835 and the core network 140can also continue to monitor whether expiration occurs (825) for theother directional channel that was not decreased at 835 (if any). Aswill be appreciated, the UE can be notified with respect to the QoSadjustment (or GBR decrease) of 830 via an end-to-end communication, asshown below in FIG. 8C between 855C-890C and/or in FIG. 8D between850D-865D. 800B through 835B of FIG. 8B illustrates an even moredetailed implementation of 800 through 835 of FIG. 8A, respectively,whereby LTE-specific and W-CDMA-specific components and messages arereferenced more explicitly.

FIG. 8C illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 8B within a W-CDMAnetwork for a given UE that is a call target of a half-duplex App* PTTsession originated by some other UE in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. Referring to FIG. 8C, 800C through 820C correspond to600B through 620B from FIG. 6B, respectively. At 825C, the SGSN 220Bstarts and maintains UL and DL traffic inactivity timers (as in 800Bthrough 820B of FIG. 8B). At some point, assume that the SGSN's 220B ULtraffic inactivity timer expires, 830C (e.g., as in 825B of FIG. 8C).Accordingly, the SGSN 220B reduces its GBR on the App* UL GBR bearer toa nominal level, such as 1 kpbs, via the signaling of 835C and 840C withthe GGSN 225B. At 845C, the GGSN 225B starts (after the App* GBR beareris brought up at 820C) and maintains UL and DL traffic inactivity timersthat are independent of the SGSN's 220B timers from 825C (as in 800Bthrough 820B of FIG. 8B). At some point, assume that the GGSN's 225B ULtraffic inactivity timer expires, 850C (e.g., as in 825B of FIG. 8C).Accordingly, the GGSN 225B prompts the RAN 120 to reduce the GBR on theApp* UL GBR bearer to a nominal level, such as 1 kpbs, via the signalingbetween 855C through 895C. While FIG. 8C is specific to a half-duplexPTT session, it will be readily appreciated how FIG. 8C could bemodified to accommodate full-duplex sessions or half-duplex sessionsother than PTT. Also, while FIG. 8C is specific to a call target UE, itwill be readily appreciated how FIG. 8C could be modified for a calloriginator UE (e.g., instead of page being received at 805C, a PTTbutton push is detected, etc.). Also, while FIG. 8C shows the given UEreceiving the page at 805C while in URA_PCH/CELL_PCH state, the given UEcould alternately receive the PTT call announcement while in CELL_DCHstate in an alternative implementation.

FIG. 8D illustrates an example implementation of FIG. 8B within an LTEnetwork for a given UE that is a call originator of a half-duplex App*PTT session in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referringto FIG. 8D, 800D through 820D correspond to 600C through 620C from FIG.6C, respectively. At 825D, the S-GW 230D starts and maintains UL and DLtraffic inactivity timers (as in 800B through 820B of FIG. 8B). At somepoint, assume that the S-GW's 230D DL traffic inactivity timer expires,830D (e.g., as in 825B of FIG. 8C). Accordingly, the S-GW 230D reducesits GBR on the App* DL GBR bearer to a nominal level, such as 1 kpbs,and notifies the P-GW/PCRF 235D/240D of the GBR reduction, 835D. At840D, the P-GWPCRF 235D/240D starts (after the App* GBR is brought up at820D) and maintains UL and DL traffic inactivity timers that areindependent of the S-GW's 230D timers from 825D (as in 800B through 820Bof FIG. 8B). At some point, assume that the DL traffic inactivity timermaintained by the P-GW/PCRF 235D/240D 225B expires, 845D (e.g., as in825B of FIG. 8C). Accordingly, the P-GW/PCRF 235D/240D prompts theserving eNodeB 205D to reduce the GBR on the App* DL GBR bearer to anominal level, such as 1 kpbs, via the signaling between 850D through874D. While FIG. 8D is specific to a half-duplex PTT session, it will bereadily appreciated how FIG. 8D could be modified to accommodatefull-duplex sessions or half-duplex sessions other than PTT. Also, whileFIG. 8D is specific to a call originator UE, it will be readilyappreciated how FIG. 8D could be modified for a call target UE (e.g.,instead of a PTT button push at 805D, a PTT page or call announcementmessage may arrive for the App* session.). Also, while FIG. 8D shows thegiven UE originating the App* PTT session from RCC-Idle state, the givenUE could also originate the App* PTT session while already inRCC-Connected state in an alternative implementation.

FIG. 9A illustrates a more detailed implementation example of a QoSmanagement procedure whereby the GBR resources are managed locally atthe RAN 120 and the core network 140 in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. As explained in Table 2 (above), the QoS managementprocedure whereby the GBR resources are managed locally at the RAN 120and the core network 140 (i.e., #4 from Table 2) can be implemented inthe LTE core network of FIG. 2D, but may not be capable ofstandard-compliant implementation in the 1x EV-DO core network of FIG.2A, or the W-CDMA core network of FIGS. 2B-2C, or the eHRPD network ofFIG. 2E.

Referring to FIG. 9A, in response to detection of setup of an App* GBRmedia bearer for an App* communication session (e.g., a half-duplex App*session, a full-duplex App* session, etc.), both the serving eNodeBs(s)within the RAN 120 for a particular UE participating in thecommunication session and the core network 140 (e.g., the S-GW 230D aswell as the P-GW 235D) start data inactivity timers that monitor UL andDL traffic on the App* GBR media bearer, 900. Generally, FIG. 9Acorresponds to an LTE implementation that is similar to FIG. 8A, exceptthat the RAN 120 also maintains UL and DL traffic inactivity timers forcontrolling the QoS resources (e.g., GBR) on the UL and DL channels. Inother words, the RAN 120 and the LTE core network componentsindependently execute their respective timers and make their own GBR orQoS adjustments, such that coordination between the RAN 120 and the LTEcore network (e.g., signaling messages) need not be used to implementthe QoS adjustments at the different entities; i.e., each LTE componentcan independently or unilaterally make QoS decisions based on its owntraffic inactivity timer(s). As will be appreciated, this means thateach LTE component can change the GBR or QoS in an independent manner,such that the UE (or client device) to which the bearer with theadjusted QoS is assigned need not be notified of the QoS adjustment(s)implemented at the core network, although the UE would still be aware ofQoS adjustment(s) implemented by the RAN 120 with respect to its airinterface resources. Accordingly, aside from the dual RAN and corenetwork implementation, 900-935 of FIG. 9A is similar to 800-835 of FIG.8A, respectively, and will not be described further for the sake ofbrevity. 900B through 935B of FIG. 9B illustrates an even more detailedimplementation of 900 through 935 of FIG. 9A, respectively, wherebyLTE-specific components and messages are referenced more explicitly.

FIGS. 10A-10B illustrate RAN-initiated timer-based direction QoS flowmanagement procedures with respect to W-CDMA and EV-DO architectures,respectively, in accordance with embodiments of the invention. Asexplained in Table 2 (above), the RAN-initiated timer-based directionQoS flow management procedure (i.e., #5 from Table 2) can be implementedin the W-CDMA core network of FIGS. 2B-2C (if the “Interactive” trafficclass is used for the session, shown in FIG. 10A), or can be implementedin the 1x EV-DO core network of FIG. 2A (shown in FIG. 10B), but may notbe capable of standard-compliant implementation in the LTE network ofFIG. 2D.

Referring to FIG. 10A which describes the W-CDMA-specificimplementation, in response to detection of setup of an App* data RABfor a communication session (e.g., a half-duplex App* session, afull-duplex App* session, etc.), the RAN 120 (i.e., the UTRAN) startsdata inactivity timers that monitor UL and DL traffic on the App* dataRAB, 1000A. In particular, the App* data RAB is configured with the“Interactive” traffic class, signaling indication (“Yes”) and ARPattributes at 1000A, or alternatively the App* data RAB can beconfigured with the “Conversational” traffic class if the RAN 120 iscapable of being reconfigured so that the GBR parameters associated withthe “Conversational” traffic class can be modified.

At 1005A, the RAN 120 determines whether UL or DL traffic is detected onthe App* data RAB for the communication session. In particular, the RAN120 determines whether traffic for the App* communication session isdetected in the UL or DL direction at 1005A. If UL or DL traffic isdetected by the RAN 120 at 1005A, the traffic inactivity timer for eachdirection (UL and/or DL) on which the traffic was detected is reset,1010A. At 1015A, for each direction (UL and/or DL) in which trafficinactivity timers are still running (i.e., not yet expired), the RAN 120determines whether a threshold GBR is already setup for the App* dataRAB in the respective direction (e.g., similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550of FIG. 5). For example, at 1015A, the RAN 120 can check whetherMAC-es/MAC-hs GBR is set to X_(App)* kpbs on the UL and/or DL of thedata RAB. If not, the RNC 215B requests the serving Node B(s) within theRAN 120 to increase the GBR (e.g., to X_(App)* kpbs) in each direction(UL or DL) for which the associated traffic inactivity timer is stillrunning that does not yet have the threshold GBR, 1020A. As will beappreciated, the UE can be notified with respect to the QoS adjustment(or GBR increase) of 1020A because the QoS adjustment is implementedwith respect to an air interface resource (i.e., the connection betweenthe UE and the RAN 120).

Referring to FIG. 10A, at 1025A, the RAN 120 further determines if ULdata traffic is detected on the App* data RAB, the serving Node B checkswhether the App* data RAB is configured with non-scheduled transmissiongrant to support GBR for the UL, 1025A. If so, no further action isnecessary for setting up the UL GBR at the serving Node B for the App*data RAB, 1030A. If not, the serving Node B reconfigures the App* dataRAB for non-scheduled transmission grant on the UL, 1035A.

Referring to FIG. 10A, the RAN 120 monitors the UL and DL trafficinactivity timers to determine whether the UL and DL traffic inactivitytimers expire, 1040A. If expiration is detected at 1040A, the RAN 120determines whether a threshold GBR is not already setup for the GBRmedia bearer in the respective direction for which expiration isdetected, 1045A (e.g., similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550 of FIG. 5). Forexample, at 1045A, the RAN 120 can check whether MAC-es/MAC-hs GBR isset to X_(App)* kpbs on the UL and/or DL of the App* data RAB. If thethreshold GBR is not setup for the UL or DL in an expired direction, theprocess returns to 1005A. Otherwise, if the threshold GBR is setup forthe UL or DL in an expired direction, the RNC 215B requests the servingNode B(s) within the RAN 120 to decrease the GBR (e.g., to X_(App)*kpbs) in each direction (UL or DL) for which the associated trafficinactivity timer is expired and has the threshold GBR, 1050A. As will beappreciated, the UE can be notified with respect to the QoS adjustment(or GBR decrease) of 1050A because the QoS adjustment is implementedwith respect to an air interface resource (i.e., the connection betweenthe UE and the RAN 120).

Referring to FIG. 10A, at 1055A, if the UL traffic inactivity timerexpires at 1040A for the data RAB, the serving Node B checks whether theApp* data RAB is configured with non-scheduled transmission grant tosupport GBR for the UL, 1055A. If not, no further action is necessary1060A. If so, the serving Node B reconfigures the App* data RAB forscheduled transmission grant on the UL, 1065A.

Turning to FIG. 10B which describes the 1x EV-DO-specificimplementation, in response to detection of setup of a media QoS flowfor an App* communication session (e.g., a half-duplex session, afull-duplex session, etc.), the RAN 120 starts data inactivity timersthat monitor UL and DL traffic on the App* media QoS flow, 1000B.

At 1005B, the RAN 120 determines whether UL or DL traffic is detected onthe App* media QoS flow for the communication session. If UL or DLtraffic is detected by the RAN 120 at 1005B, the traffic inactivitytimer for each direction (UL and/or DL) on which the traffic wasdetected is reset, 1010B. At 1015B, for each direction (UL and/or DL) inwhich traffic inactivity timers are still running (i.e., not yetexpired), the RAN 120 determines whether QoS is already setup or turnedon for the App* media QoS flow in the respective direction (e.g.,similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550 of FIG. 5). If so, the process returnsto 1005B. If not, the RAN 120 sends a ReservationOnMessage to activatethe App* media QoS flow in the direction for which activity wasdetected, 1020B. As will be appreciated, the UE can be notified withrespect to the QoS flow activation of 1020B because the QoS flowactivation is implemented with respect to an air interface resource(i.e., the connection between the UE and the RAN 120).

Referring to FIG. 10B, the RAN 120 monitors the UL and DL trafficinactivity timers to determine whether the UL and DL traffic inactivitytimers expire, 1025B. If expiration is detected at 1025B, the RAN 120determines whether QoS is already setup or turned on for the App* mediaQoS flow in the respective direction for which expiration is detected,1030B (e.g., similar to 515, 525, 540 and 550 of FIG. 5). If so, theprocess returns to 1005B. Otherwise, if the QoS is setup for the App*media QoS flow in a direction for which the associated trafficinactivity timer has expired, the RAN 120 sends a ReservationOffMessageto deactivate the media QoS flow in the direction for which expirationwas detected, 1035B. As will be appreciated, the UE can be notified withrespect to the QoS flow deactivation of 1035B because the QoS flowdeactivation is implemented with respect to an air interface resource(i.e., the connection between the UE and the RAN 120).

The Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) along with the Internet EngineeringTask Force (IETF) started development in 2011 of a web developertechnology called Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC). WebRTC is aprotocol that permits a browser (or endpoint) to engage in peer-to-peer(P2P) real-time communication with one or more other endpointsregardless of the relative location of the endpoints (e.g., whether therespective endpoints on the same device, in the same private network,both behind distinct Network Address Translation (NATs) and/orfirewalls, etc.).

WebRTC leverages the Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP) for thetransmission of real-time media. RTP is a flexible protocol that canserve as a transport protocol for many different media types. Thesemedia types can be broadly classified as mapping to audio or video, orcan be more specific by designating information such as an associatedaudio or video codec, bandwidth requirements, audio or video resolution,etc. Moreover, in a mesh conferencing model, multiple media streams maybe sent P2P to enable client-based audio mixing or video compositing.

Because endpoints communicating via WebRTC can be separated by one ormore NATs and/or firewalls that limit the number of end-to-endconnections between the respective endpoints, WebRTC allows formultiplexing of RTP streams through a single IP address and port. Due inpart to this limitation, existing WebRTC specifications recommend thatmultiplexing be employed for RTP and RTP control protocol (RTCP)communications. When streams of multiple types are multiplexed throughone IP address and port number, offering differentiated Quality ofService (QoS) to different types of media becomes more challenging.

For example, in non-WebRTC video conferencing sessions, it is typicalfor the audio stream to be kept separate from the video stream, wherebythe audio stream is allocated to a QoS link and the video stream isallocated to a non-QoS link. This is because the audio stream generallyconsumes less bandwidth than the video stream, and because the videostream can be helped by procedures such as error-concealment strategiesat the receiver, use of forward error correction codes, lowering thevideo resolution, and so on.

A conventional approach for obtaining QoS differentiation for differentmedia types in WebRTC is to disable multiplexing in the browser itself.However, this requires modifications to the browser, and also assumesthat the browser will be capable of establishing multiple end-to-endconnections (i.e., distinct IP addresses and port numbers) for thedifferent media types.

Other conventional approaches for obtaining QoS differentiation fordifferent media types in WebRTC is to allow 3GPP-defined QoS-enabledtraffic flows to trigger off of IP-packet Differentiated Services CodePoint markings (DSCP) markings or to allow 3GPP-defined QoS-enabledtraffic flows to trigger off of the RTP synchronization source (SSRC).However, each of these conventional approaches changes in 3GPP standardsthat would affect packet filters and traffic flow templates as a result.

Yet another conventional approach is for the browser itself to leveragethe above-described UE-initiated QoS feature, whereby the browser on theUE would attempt to set-up a QoS link and bypass multiplexing at leastfor audio media. However, this approach requires both changes to thebrowser as well as to the WebRTC API to permit flows to be identified byapplication-type for triggering the UE-initiated QoS feature.

Embodiments of the invention are directed to obtaining QoSdifferentiation for communication sessions that utilize WebRTC withoutrequiring modification to a WebRTC multimedia client application (e.g.,a browser) and/or to 3GPP signaling or network design. At a high-level,the embodiments of the invention described below provision the UE with aproxy module that selectively de-multiplexes certain media component(s)from a multiplexed RTP stream obtained from the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication, and also selectively re-multiplexes incoming media into amultiplexed format that is expected by the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication.

FIG. 11 illustrates a conventional flow of traffic for a WebRTC sessionbetween two UEs. Referring to FIG. 11, a first UE 1100 (or UE 1) isprovisioned with a first WebRTC multimedia client application 1105, suchas a mobile browsing application. The WebRTC multimedia clientapplication 1105 multiplexes media (e.g., audio, video, etc.) into asingle multiplexed stream (“MUX”) for the WebRTC session, and thendelivers the multiplexed stream within one or more RTP/RTPC packets to aserving network 1110 (e.g., a WiFi network, the RAN 120, etc.) via asingle IP address and port number. The serving network 1110 usesNAT/firewall traversal techniques to punch through or open a connectionthrough a NAT/firewall 1115 in order to deliver the multiplexed streamto a serving network 1120. The serving network 1120 delivers themultiplexed stream from UE 1 to a second UE 1125 (or UE 2) provisionedwith a second WebRTC multimedia client application 1130, such as anothermobile browsing application. As will be appreciated, because the firstWebRTC multimedia client application 1105 produces MUX by default, MUXwould also be used in scenarios where UEs 1 and 2 are both being servedby the same serving network such that communication between UEs 1 and 2is possible without NAT/firewall traversal.

FIG. 12A illustrates a flow of traffic for a WebRTC session between twoUEs that are served by the same serving network in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 12A, a first UE 1200 (orUE 1) is provisioned with a first WebRTC multimedia client application1205 (or first WebRTC endpoint), such as a mobile browsing application.UE 1 is also provisioned with a first WebRTC proxy module 1210. As willbe described below in more detail, the first WebRTC proxy module 1210 isconfigured to selectively de-multiplex portions of media from the singlemultiplexed stream (“MUX”) that the first WebRTC multimedia clientapplication 1205 is trying to transmit, and also to “re”-multiplexmultiple incoming media streams that were de-multiplexed by anotherWebRTC proxy module on another UE into a single multiplexed stream fordelivery to the first WebRTC multimedia client application 1205.

Referring to FIG. 12A, in an example, the first WebRTC multimedia clientapplication 1205 can be configured similarly (or even identically) tothe WebRTC multimedia client application 1105 from FIG. 11. In otherwords, the embodiment of FIG. 12A does not strictly require any changesto existing WebRTC multimedia client applications for operation, andWebRTC endpoints can continue to operate “normally” while relying uponthe WebRTC proxy module 1210 to implement the selective de-multiplexingand/or re-multiplexing of media streams for leveraging a QoS link (ifavailable).

Accordingly, the first WebRTC multimedia client application 1205multiplexes media (e.g., audio, video, etc.) into a single multiplexedstream (“MUX”) for the WebRTC session, and attempts to transmit MUXwithin one or more RTP/RTPC packets to a serving network 1110 (e.g., aWiFi network, the RAN 120, etc.). However, in FIG. 12A, instead oftransmitting MUX to the serving network as in FIG. 11, the WebRTC proxymodule 1210 intercepts MUX for special handling (i.e., de-multiplexing).

More specifically, in FIG. 12A, it is assumed that UE 1 is able toobtain both a QoS link (e.g., via proxy-initiated, UE-initiated and/orNW-initiated QoS acquisition procedures as will be discussed below inmore detail with respect to FIGS. 13-17) and a non-QoS link. As usedherein, the term “non-QoS” link can refer to any connection, bearer orchannel that has zero QoS (or GBR), or alternatively a connection,bearer or channel that has an “intermediate” level of QoS (or GBR) thatis less than a threshold of QoS by which QoS links are defined whilestill being above zero (whereby the QoS link has a level of QoS thatgreater than or equal to the threshold).

The first WebRTC proxy module 1210 applies a set of QoS rules toidentify higher-priority media that was already multiplexed into themultiplexed stream by the first WebRTC multimedia client application1205. Table 3 (below) provides a few examples of QoS rules that can beenforced by the first WebRTC proxy module 1210 as part of a selectivede-multiplexing procedure in accordance with embodiments of theinvention:

TABLE 3 QoS Rule Examples for De-Multiplexing Operation at WebRTC ProxyModule QoS link or Rule # Media Type Non-QoS link? 1 Audio Media QoSLink 2 ‘Bulk’ Video Media: Non-QoS Link B-Frames and/or P-Frames 3Non-Bulk Video Media: QoS Link (e.g., I-Frame or I-Slice; during periodof Header Information (e.g., macroblock (MB) type, audio silence)quantization parameters and/or motion vectors); Sequence Parameter Set(SPS); Picture Parameter Set (PPS); Alternate representations of apicture frame or slice via a lower quantization size (e.g., thumbnails,etc.); and/or Lip Sync Info. 4 High-Priority Non-Video File Data: QoSLink (e.g., Decryption Keys for a corresponding file; during period ofHeader Information (e.g., file size, file type or audio silence) MIMEtype, a thumbnail version of an image); and/or A self-contained filethat is small in size and includes high-priority content 5Lower-Priority Non-Video File Data Non-QoS Link

With respect to Table 3 (above), it will be appreciated that certainnon-audio data can be mapped to a QoS link instead of a non-QoS linkbased on certain rules, such as moving non-audio data to the QoS linkduring periods of silence or periods of audio activity if sufficient QoSis available on the QoS link, and these same rules (summarized in Table3 above) can also be used as part of the set of QoS rules fordetermining which media types are de-multiplexed for transmission on theQoS link instead of the non-QoS link. Thus, the media transmitted on theQoS link does not need to be strictly limited to audio, but couldinclude certain higher-priority types of video media and/or non-videofile media as well.

Turning back to FIG. 12A, if the first WebRTC proxy module 1210 is ableto identify higher-priority media present within the multiplexed streambased on the set of QoS rules, the first WebRTC proxy module 1210de-multiplexes (or strips out) the higher-priority media (e.g., audiomedia and/or a limited amount of video media such as video controlframes, I-frames, etc.) from lower-priority media (e.g., bulk videomedia, etc.). It will be appreciated that, functionally, thelower-priority media could also be stripped out (or de-multiplexed) fromthe multiplexed stream, so long as the first WebRTC proxy module 1210produces a first de-multiplexed WebRTC stream (“DE-MUX1”) that includesthe higher-priority media and a second de-multiplexed WebRTC stream(“DE-MUX2”) that includes the lower-priority media. The first WebRTCproxy module 1210 transmits DE-MUX1 to a serving network 1215 on the QoSlink, and transmits DE-MUX2 to the serving network 1215 on the non-QoSlink.

In a further embodiment, the de-multiplexing operation that producesDE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 from MUX can include transcoding. If this is thecase, as part of an offer/answer exchange (e.g., in 1435 of FIG. 14,1540 of FIG. 15, etc.) a codec supported by WebRTC-enabled browsers(e.g., G.711, Opus, etc.) can be selected by the WebRTC proxy module1210. For example, if spectral efficiency were desired, then G.711(which is essentially companded PCM) can be selected for transcoding aspectrally-efficient narrowband codec such AMR-NB. On the other hand, ifboth spectral efficiency and audio quality are desired, then one of thewideband Opus codec modes could be selected for transcoding to AMR-WB.In an example, Opus could be selected by default for VoLTE bearers ifVoLTE is used to support the WebRTC session.

Referring to FIG. 12A, assume that a second UE 1225 (or UE 2) isprovisioned with a second WebRTC multimedia client application 1230 (orsecond WebRTC endpoint) and a second WebRTC proxy module 1235, which caneach be configured similarly (or even identically) to the first WebRTCmultimedia client application 1205 and the first WebRTC proxy module1210, respectively, on UE 1. Further assume that, similar to UE 1, UE 2is able to obtain both a QoS link (e.g., via a UE-initiated orNW-initiated QoS acquisition procedure as will be discussed below inmore detail with respect to FIGS. 13-17) and a non-QoS link.

In the embodiment of FIG. 12A, both UEs 1 and 2 are served by the sameserving network 1215, such that DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 need not traversethe NAT/firewall 1220. Instead, the serving network 1215 transmitsDE-MUX1 to UE 2 on UE 2's QoS link and transmits DE-MUX2 to UE 2 on UE2's non-QoS link. The second WebRTC proxy module 1210 receives DE-MUX1and DE-MUX2 and then “re”-multiplexes DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 to reconstructor reconstitute the multiplexed stream (“MUX”) that was initiallyprovided to the first WebRTC proxy module 1210 by the first WebRTCmultimedia client application 1205. In other words, the second WebRTCproxy module 1235 reverses the de-multiplexing procedure performed bythe first WebRTC proxy module 1210 in order to reconstruct MUX. Thesecond WebRTC proxy module 1235 then provides the reconstructed (orre-multiplexed) MUX to the WebRTC multimedia client application 1230.

As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, QoS is usedto transfer part of the media (e.g., audio media, higher-priority videomedia, etc.) for the WebRTC session in FIG. 12A in part because UEs 1and 2 are both served by the same serving network 1215 and can obtainend-to-end QoS. This is not possible in FIG. 11, because WebRTCmultimedia client applications would conventionally default toexchanging MUX without setting up QoS for any portion of the multiplexedmedia within MUX.

FIG. 12B illustrates a flow of traffic for a WebRTC session between twoUEs that are served by different serving networks in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. FIG. 12B is similar to FIG. 12A, exceptthat the single serving network 1215 in FIG. 12A is replaced with twodistinct serving networks 1215A and 1215B which serve UEs 1 and 2,respectively, and are separated by the NAT/firewall 1220.

In FIG. 12B, the serving network 1215A does not directly transmitDE-MUX1 and/or DE-MUX2 to UE 2 because the serving network 1215A is notserving UE 2. Instead, the serving network 1215A uses NAT/firewalltraversal techniques to punch through or open at least one connectionthrough the NAT/firewall 1220 in order to deliver DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 tothe serving network 1215B. In an example, the serving network 1215A canbundle DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 into a single stream so that a single IPaddress and port number can be used to pass both DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 tothe serving network 1215B, whereby the serving network 1215B thende-bundles the single stream to reconstitute DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2.Alternatively, the serving network 1215A can simply use two distinct IPaddresses and port numbers for DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2. In any case, even ifQoS is unavailable over the trunk from the serving network 1215A to theserving network 1215B, QoS is at least obtained within the servingnetworks so that a portion of the end-to-end WebRTC media transfer isallocated QoS.

The serving network 1215B transmits DE-MUX1 to UE 2 on UE 2's QoS linkand transmits DE-MUX2 to UE 2 on UE 2's non-QoS link. The second WebRTCproxy module 1210 receives DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 and then “re”-multiplexesDE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 to reconstruct or reconstitute the multiplexedstream (“MUX”) that was initially provided to the first WebRTC proxymodule 1210 by the first WebRTC multimedia client application 1205. Inother words, the second WebRTC proxy module 1235 reverses thede-multiplexing procedure performed by the first WebRTC proxy module1210 in order to reconstruct MUX (e.g., either the original version ofMUX or a different version of MUX, such as a compressed orreduced-resolution version of MUX including compressed versions of someor all of the media components from the original MUX, etc.). The secondWebRTC proxy module 1235 then provides the reconstructed (orre-multiplexed) MUX to the WebRTC multimedia client application 1230.

The de-multiplexing and re-multiplexing operations described withrespect to the WebRTC streams of FIGS. 12A-12B are based upon UEs 1 and2 being able to obtain a QoS link to carry the higher-priorityde-multiplexed WebRTC flow, or DE-MUX1. In FIGS. 12A-12B, it is simplyassumed that the QoS link is available, but typically, the WebRTCmultimedia client application does not attempt to acquire QoS for MUX,in part because MUX includes components that typically would not receiveQoS such as bulk video content and also because the WebRTC multimediaclient application does not even necessarily have the capacity toidentify the QoS resources available at its respective UE.

With this in mind, FIGS. 13-17 illustrate processes of selectivelyestablishing QoS for a WebRTC session in conjunction with thede-multiplexing and/or re-multiplexing operations described above inaccordance with embodiments of the invention. In particular, FIG. 13illustrates a high-level process of setting-up a QoS link for the WebRTCsession followed by de-multiplexing at the source UE in the WebRTCsession in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

With respect to FIG. 13, signaling is exchanged between a WebRTCmultimedia client application (e.g., either the first WebRTC multimediaclient application 1205 or the second WebRTC multimedia clientapplication 1230 from FIG. 12A or FIG. 12B) provisioned at a given UE, aWebRTC proxy module provisioned at the given UE, the RAN 120 that isserving the given UE, the core network 140 and/or the application server170 that indicates initiation or potential initiation of a WebRTCsession involving the given UE, 1300. Based on the signaling from 1300,the WebRTC proxy module on the given UE, the RAN 120, the core network140 and/or the application server 170 initiate a QoS setup procedure forallocating a QoS link to the given UE at 1305, 1310, 1315 or 1320,respectively.

In an example, in 1300, the WebRTC session may be originated by thegiven UE, in which case the signaling of 1300 can include a sessioninitiation message that is generated by the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication and intercepted by the WebRTC proxy module for UE-initiatedQoS at 1305. In this case, 1305 is somewhat similar to the UE-initiatedQoS procedures described above with respect to FIGS. 5-6C, and isdescribed in more detail below specifically with respect to the WebRTCde-multiplexing implementation in FIG. 14. Alternatively, theUE-initiated QoS procedure of 1305 can be implemented in a scenariowhere the WebRTC session is originated by a different UE. In this case,a session announcement message for the WebRTC session and/or a sessionacceptance message transmitted by the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication can be used by the WebRTC proxy module at the given UE fortriggering the UE-initiated QoS procedure.

In a further example, 1305 need not be implemented as a UE-initiated QoSprocedure whereby the given UE triggers the RAN 120 and/or the corenetwork 140 to set-up QoS on its behalf. Instead, in anotherLTE-specific embodiment, the WebRTC proxy module can instead negotiatean end-to-end VoLTE connection if the other endpoint is VoLTE compatibleand/or is executing its own WebRTC proxy module. Establishing end-to-endVoLTE connections in this manner restricts the flexibility of QoS bearernegotiation for WebRTC, but also obviates the need to implementUE-initiated and/or NW-initiated QoS procedures. As used herein, anend-to-end VoLTE implementation for QoS setup is referred to as a“proxy-initiated” QoS procedure.

In another example, in 1300, the WebRTC session may be originated by thegiven UE, in which case the signaling of 1300 can include a sessioninitiation message that is generated by the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication and intercepted by the WebRTC proxy module. The WebRTC proxymodule then sends a message to the application server 170 to prompt theapplication server 170 to implement a NW-initiated QoS procedure at 1320that results in the given UE being allocated the QoS link. In this case,1320 is somewhat similar to the server-based NW-initiated QoS proceduresdescribed above with respect to FIGS. 7A-7C, and is described in moredetail below specifically with respect to the WebRTC de-multiplexingimplementation in FIG. 15. Alternatively, the server-based NW-initiatedQoS procedure of 1320 can be implemented in a scenario where the WebRTCsession is originated by a different UE. In this case, a sessionannouncement message for the WebRTC session and/or a session acceptancemessage transmitted by the WebRTC multimedia client application can beused by the WebRTC proxy module at the given UE for triggering themessage to the application server 170 that prompts the applicationserver 170 to start the server-based NW-initiated QoS procedure.

In another example, in 1300, irrespective of whether the given UE is theoriginator of the WebRTC session, the RAN 120 and/or the core network140 can evaluate application-identifying information and/or can performdeep-packet inspection for triggering the NW-initiated QoS procedure at1310 and/or 1315. For example, the WebRTC session can be interpreted asan App* session, which triggers QoS setup at the RAN 120 and/or the corenetwork as described above with respect to FIGS. 8A-10B. In anotherexample, any of the WebRTC traffic can be inspected via deep-packetinspection by the RAN 120 and/or the core network 140. In this case, ifthe RAN 120 and/or core network 140 identify the session as involvingWebRTC, the RAN 120 and/or core network 140 can trigger the NW-initiatedQoS procedure for allocating the QoS link to the given UE. The aspectsof 1310 and 1315 are somewhat similar to the NW-initiated QoS proceduresdescribed above with respect to FIGS. 8A-10B, and are described in moredetail below specifically with respect to the WebRTC de-multiplexingimplementation in FIG. 16.

Accordingly, after 1305, 1310, 1315 and/or 1320 are implemented, thegiven UE is allocated both a QoS link and a non-QoS link, 1325. TheWebRTC multimedia client application obtains different types (e.g.,audio, video, etc.) of media for transmission during the WebRTC session,1330, and the WebRTC multimedia client application multiplexes thedifferent types of media into a multiplex stream (“MUX”), 1335. Whileattempting to transmit MUX, MUX is instead intercepted by the WebRTCproxy module on the given UE, 1340. The WebRTC proxy module executes theset of QoS rules described above to identify higher-priority media(e.g., audio media, a limited amount of video media, etc.) that iscontained within MUX, 1345. The WebRTC proxy module then de-multiplexesthe higher-priority media identified at 1345 to generate a firstde-multiplexed WebRTC stream (“DE-MUX1”) that includes thehigher-priority media and a second de-multiplexed WebRTC stream(“DE-MUX2”) that includes any remaining lower-priority media, 1350. TheWebRTC proxy module transmits DE-MUX1 to the RAN 120 over the QoS link,1355, and the WebRTC proxy module also transmits DE-MUX2 to the RAN 120on the non-QoS link, 1360. While not shown explicitly in FIG. 13,DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 can then be conveyed to a target UE (not shown inFIG. 13) as in FIGS. 12A-12B and also described in more detail belowwith respect to FIG. 17.

FIG. 14 illustrates an LTE-specific implementation of the process ofFIG. 13 based on a server-based NW-initiated QoS procedure for aUE-originated WebRTC session in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

Referring to FIG. 14, the given UE is in an RRC-Idle state, 1400, when aWebRTC web browsing application (“browser”) on the given UE sends a CallInitiation message that is intercepted by the WebRTC proxy module, 1405.Receipt of the Call Initiation message triggers the WebRTC proxy moduleto send a proprietary message to the application server 170 to requestthat the application server 170 trigger a NW-initiated QoS procedure,1410. In response to the proprietary message, the application server 170initiates bearer negotiation over an Rx connection to the P-GW 235D andPCRF 240D, 1415.

Turning back to the given UE, receipt of the Call Initiation messagealso triggers the given UE to perform an RRC setup procedure fortransitioning the given UE from the RRC-Idle state to the RRC-Connectedstate, 1420. When the RRC setup completes at 1420 such that the given UEenters an RRC-Connected state, 1425, and the WebRTC proxy moduledelivers a Connection Indication to the browser, 1430. At this point,the given UE has a non-GBR bearer (i.e., the non-QoS link) but does notyet have the QoS link because the bearer negotiation has not yetcompleted, 1432. The browser and WebRTC proxy module execute anoffer/answer exchange, 1435 (e.g., whereby the WebRTC proxy module canselect a transcoding codec to be used for DE-MUX1 and/or DE-MUX2), afterwhich the browser begins to configure media for transmission during theWebRTC session, 1440.

Turning back to the network, the P-GW 235D sends an update bearerrequest to the MME 215D, 1445, the MME 215D sends a bearer modifyrequest to the eNB 205D, 1450, which prompts the eNB 205D and the givenUE to reconfigure the RRC connection, 1455 (e.g., RRC ConnectionReconfiguration/Complete). The eNB 205D then transmits a bearer modifyresponse back to the MME 215D, and the MME 215D transmits an updatebearer response back to the P-GW 235D. While triggered differently,1445-1465 are somewhat similar to 725C-750C of FIG. 7C. Also, if theWebRTC session is an App* session, the GBR established for the GBRbearer can be configured as in 735C of FIG. 7C with a QoS configurationthat is specific for App* (or in this case, WebRTC).

After obtaining the GBR bearer (or QoS link) via the signaling of1445-1465, the browser begins to send MUX (e.g., a stream of RTP/RTCPpackets with multiplexed media components for transmission) to theWebRTC proxy module, 1470, the WebRTC proxy module de-multiplexes MUX togenerate DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 and then transmits DE-MUX1 on the GBRbearer, 1475, and transmits DE-MUX2 on the non-GBR bearer, 1480.

FIG. 15 illustrates an LTE-specific implementation of the process ofFIG. 13 based on a UE-initiated QoS procedure in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

Referring to FIG. 15, the given UE is in an RRC-Idle state, 1500, when aWebRTC web browsing application (“browser”) on the given UE sends a CallInitiation message that is intercepted by the WebRTC proxy module, 1505.The Call Initiation message triggers the given UE to perform an RRCsetup procedure for transitioning the given UE from the RRC-Idle stateto the RRC-Connected state, 1510. When the RRC setup completes at 1510,the given UE enters an RRC-Connected state, 1515, and the WebRTC proxymodule delivers a Connection Indication to the browser, 1520. At thispoint, the given UE has a non-GBR bearer (i.e., the non-QoS link) butdoes not yet have the QoS link because the bearer negotiation has notyet completed, 1525.

In the embodiment of FIG. 15, the WebRTC proxy module determines toexecute a UE-initiated QoS procedure to obtain a QoS link. In anexample, the UE-initiated QoS procedure can be used as a fallbackmechanism if a NW-initiated QoS procedure as in FIG. 14 fails to obtainthe QoS link. For example, while not shown in FIG. 15, the WebRTC proxymodule can send the proprietary message as in 1410 of FIG. 14 and thenstart a timer, and if the QoS link is not obtained prior to expirationof the timer, the WebRTC proxy module can then execute the UE-initiatedQoS procedure. Alternatively, the WebRTC proxy module can automaticallydetermine to execute the UE-initiated QoS procedure without waiting tofirst attempt the NW-initiated QoS procedure based on the session-typebeing WebRTC.

In any case, irrespective of how the WebRTC proxy module reaches thedecision to implement the UE-initiated QoS procedure, the UE-initiatedQoS procedure is implemented by transmitting a Request Bearer ResourceModification message from the given UE to the MME 215D via the eNB 205D,1530. The Request Bearer Resource Modification message of 1530 isconfigured to request the GBR bearer for an audio media component of theWebRTC session (e.g., and potentially other media components as well,such as a limited amount of video media and/or file content). The MME215D receives the Request Bearer Resource Modification message anddelivers a Bearer Resource Command to the P-GW 235D via the S-GW 230D,1535. At this point, 1540-1585 substantially correspond 1435-1480 ofFIG. 14, respectively, except that 1540-1585 is triggered by a messagedelivered by the given UE to the LTE core network 140, whereas 1435-1480is triggered by a message delivered by the application server 170 to theLTE core network 140.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example implementation of a portion of theprocess of FIG. 13 based on another NW-initiated QoS procedure inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 16,based on the signaling exchanged at 1300 of FIG. 13, the RAN 120 and/orcore network 140 triggers setup of the QoS link for the given UE withoutan explicit request to do so provided from the application server 170(as in FIG. 14) or the given UE itself (as in FIG. 15). Instead, the RAN120 and/or the core network 140 evaluate the signaling itself to detectwhether the RAN 120 and/or core network 140 should preemptively setupthe QoS link on behalf of the given UE, 1600 (e.g., similar to 1310and/or 1315 of FIG. 13).

In particular, the RAN 120 and/or the core network 140 can identify thatthe session being established is WebRTC, and this identification canprompt the RAN 120 and/or the core network 140 to trigger theNW-initiated QoS procedure. The identification of the session as being aWebRTC session can be performed in a number of ways. For example, theWebRTC application can correspond to App*, which is described above indetail, such that the WebRTC nature of the session can be identifiedbased on application-identifying information (e.g., the APN, etc.). Inanother example, the RAN 120 and/or the core network 140 can performdeep-packet inspection on one or more signaling packets being exchangedduring setup of the WebRTC session, and the deep-packet inspection maybe used to infer that the session is a WebRTC session. The signalingevaluated at 1600 can be associated with uplink and/or downlinksignaling traffic.

While FIG. 13 focuses on the de-multiplexing that occurs at the sourceUE in the WebRTC session, FIG. 17 is directed to a high-level process ofsetting up a QoS link for the WebRTC session followed by re-multiplexingat the target UE in the WebRTC session. Of course, a UE in the WebRTCcan be both a source UE and a target UE for a bidirectional or two-waymedia session, such that the processes of FIGS. 13 and 17 can beimplemented in parallel at both the source and target UEs.

Referring to FIG. 17, 1700-1725 correspond to 1300-1325 and will not bedescribed further for the sake of brevity. After 1725, the core network140 obtains DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 from another UE (e.g., served by thesame core network 140 as in FIG. 12A or a different serving network asin FIG. 12B). At 1730, the core network 140 transmits via the RAN 120,DE-MUX1 to the given UE on the QoS link and DE-MUX2 to the given UE onthe non-QoS link, 1730. The WebRTC proxy module intercepts DE-MUX1 andDE-MUX2 prior to their delivery to the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication, 1735, and the WebRTC proxy module re-multiplexes DE-MUX1and DE-MUX2 to reconstruct MUX, 1740. To put another way, as describedabove, the WebRTC proxy module on the reconstructs MUX by reversing thede-multiplexing performed by the WebRTC proxy module on the other UE tore-obtain MUX as initially prepared by the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication on the other UE. The WebRTC proxy module then delivers MUXto the WebRTC multimedia client application on the given UE, 1745.

Further, while FIGS. 14-16 describe detailed implementations of theprocess of FIG. 13 with respect to how the QoS link is established forthe given UE in a “de”-multiplexing context, it will be appreciated thatthese same QoS setup procedures can be used in context with FIG. 17 withrespect to a “re”-multiplexing context. In other words, the QoS linkestablished between 1700-1725 can be setup via a server-basedNW-initiated QoS procedure as in FIG. 14, a UE-initiated QoS procedureas in FIG. 15 and/or by a NW-initiated QoS procedure that is independentof a server-based trigger as in FIG. 16. Also, as noted above, the sameUE can perform the processes of both FIG. 13 and FIG. 17 in parallel,such that the WebRTC proxy module provisioned at the given UE can beresponsible for de-multiplexing an outgoing MUX as in FIG. 13 while alsore-multiplexing incoming de-multiplexed stream in order to reconstructan incoming MUX from another UE as in FIG. 17.

Further, while the embodiments of FIGS. 12A-17 refer to an “original” or“source” MUX and a “re-multiplexed” or “reconstructed” MUX, it will beappreciated that the original and reconstructed versions of MUX can beidentical or alternatively can be somewhat different (e.g., thereconstructed MUX may be compressed so as to have a lower resolution forcertain media components as compared to the original MUX due totranscoding or other factors, etc.).

Further, while the embodiments of FIGS. 12A-17 generally refer to two(2) de-multiplexed streams (i.e., DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2), it will beappreciated that other embodiments can be directed to three (3) or morede-multiplexed streams (e.g., DE-MUX3, DE-MUX4, etc.), depending on thenumber of available QoS and/or non-QoS links. For example, if the UE hasaccess to a first QoS link with high QoS, a second QoS link with low QoSand a non-QoS link, the WebRTC proxy module can generate DE-MUX1 withhigh-priority media, DE-MUX2 with intermediate-priority media andDE-MUX3 with low-priority media. The WebRTC proxy module can then sendDE-MUX1 on the first QoS link, DE-MUX2 on the second QoS link andDE-MUX3 on the non-QoS link, and so on.

In a further example, the QoS link can correspond to a first set oflinks and the non-QoS link can correspond to a second set of links. Thefirst set of links can include one or more QoS links, and the second setof links can include one or more non-QoS links. Each link in the firstset of links can carry a DE-MUX stream, and each link in the second setof links can also carry a DE-MUX stream. Generally, higher-prioritymedia is transported via the DE-MUX stream(s) on the first set of links,while lower-priority media is transported via the DE-MUX stream(s) onthe second set of links. Thus, in scenarios where the UE has access tomultiple QoS links and/or multiple non-QoS links, the UE can leveragethese multiple links to send multiple DE-MUX streams (or even the sameDE-MUX stream redundantly). Thereby, the embodiments are not limited toa single DE-MUX stream being sent on the QoS link and a single DE-MUXstream being sent on the non-QoS link when additional links (QoS and/ornon-QoS) are available. In particular, additional de-multiplexed mediacomponents from MUX can be carried on any of the aforementioned ‘extra’DE-MUX streams. Likewise, at the target UE, any of the ‘extra’ DE-MUXstreams can be re-multiplexed along with DE-MUX1 and DE-MUX2 toreconstruct MUX.

In another embodiment of the invention, it is possible forbrowser-originated multimedia traffic to not be multiplexed, or to bepartially multiplexed. In other words, the output from the WebRTCmultimedia client application need not be MUX, but could be non-MUX1 andnon-MUX2 (i.e., two non-multiplexed RTP streams), MUX1 and MUX2 (e.g.,two partially multiplexed RTP streams), or non-MUX1 and MUX1 (e.g., anon-multiplexed RTP stream and a multiplexed RTP stream). In thesecases, the WebRTC proxy module can still handle the mapping of therespective RTP streams to the non-QoS and QoS links. As an example,assume a multiparty video call where the browser sends/receives audiotraffic over one RTP stream, and also sends/receives multiple videotracks over another RTP stream (where the video tracks would be uniqueto each participant in the call). The WebRTC proxy module may be awarethat the UE has access to both QoS and non-QoS links, but the browser(or WebRTC multimedia client application) does not necessarily have theability to detect this information. Thus, the WebRTC multimedia clientapplications can RTP streams that do not require de-multiplexing whilethe WebRTC proxy module, instead of performing a de-multiplexingoperation, simply maps the respective RTP streams to the appropriatelink (i.e., the QoS link or the non-QoS link).

While the embodiments above have been described primarily with referenceto 1x EV-DO architecture in CDMA2000 networks, GPRS architecture inW-CDMA or UMTS networks and/or EPS architecture in LTE-based networks,it will be appreciated that other embodiments can be directed to othertypes of network architectures and/or protocols.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that information and signalsmay be represented using any of a variety of different technologies andtechniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information,signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout theabove description may be represented by voltages, currents,electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields orparticles, or any combination thereof.

Further, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the variousillustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm stepsdescribed in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may beimplemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinationsof both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware andsoftware, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits,and steps have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement thedescribed functionality in varying ways for each particular application,but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing adeparture from the scope of the present invention.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits describedin connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implementedor performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signalprocessor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), afield programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device,discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or anycombination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein.A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in thealternative, the processor may be any conventional processor,controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also beimplemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combinationof a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one ormore microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suchconfiguration.

The methods, sequences and/or algorithms described in connection withthe embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware,in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of thetwo. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROMmemory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removabledisk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. Anexemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such that theprocessor can read information from, and write information to, thestorage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integralto the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in anASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In thealternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discretecomponents in a user terminal.

In one or more exemplary embodiments, the functions described may beimplemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof.If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on ortransmitted over as one or more instructions or code on acomputer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computerstorage media and communication media including any medium thatfacilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Astorage media may be any available media that can be accessed by acomputer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readablemedia can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical diskstorage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or anyother medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code inthe form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed bya computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readablemedium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website,server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable,twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologiessuch as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiberoptic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such asinfrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium.Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc,optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and blu-ray discwhere disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproducedata optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also beincluded within the scope of computer-readable media.

While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative embodiments of theinvention, it should be noted that various changes and modificationscould be made herein without departing from the scope of the inventionas defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps and/or actionsof the method claims in accordance with the embodiments of the inventiondescribed herein need not be performed in any particular order.Furthermore, although elements of the invention may be described orclaimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation tothe singular is explicitly stated.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of operating a Web Real-TimeCommunication (WebRTC) proxy module at a user equipment (UE) that isengaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: obtaining a first set of linkswith each link in the first set of links being allocated at least athreshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and a second set of linksthat is different than the first set of links; obtaining, during theWebRTC session, a multiplexed stream from a WebRTC multimedia clientapplication that the WebRTC multimedia client application is attemptingto deliver to a target WebRTC multimedia client application on a targetUE, the multiplexed stream including at least a first media componentand a second media component; de-multiplexing the multiplexed stream togenerate a first de-multiplexed stream that includes the first mediacomponent and a second de-multiplexed stream that includes the secondmedia component; transmitting the first de-multiplexed stream to aserving network on a first link from the first set of links for deliveryto the target UE; and transmitting the second de-multiplexed stream tothe serving network on a second link from the second set of links fordelivery to the target UE.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein each linkin the second set of links is allocated either zero QoS or anintermediate level of QoS that is greater than zero QoS and is less thanthe threshold level of QoS.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein at leastone link in the second set of links is allocated zero QoS.
 4. The methodof claim 2, wherein at least one link in the second set of links isallocated the intermediate level of QoS.
 5. The method of claim 2,wherein the threshold level of QoS includes at least a given GuaranteedBit Rate (GBR) for each link in the first set of links, wherein eachlink in the second set of links has zero GBR and/or a GBR that is lowerthan the given GBR.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set oflinks includes only the first link and the second set of links includesonly the second link.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set oflinks includes the first link and at least one additional link, whereinthe second set of links includes only the second link, wherein themultiplexed stream further includes at least one additional mediacomponent and the de-multiplexing further de-multiplexes the multiplexedstream to generate at least one additional de-multiplexed stream thatincludes the at least one additional media component, furthercomprising: transmitting the at least one additional de-multiplexedstream to the serving network on the at least one additional link fromthe first set of links for delivery to the target UE.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the second set of links includes the second link and atleast one additional link, wherein the first set of links includes onlythe first link, wherein the multiplexed stream further includes at leastone additional media component and the de-multiplexing furtherde-multiplexes the multiplexed stream to generate at least oneadditional de-multiplexed stream that includes the at least oneadditional media component, further comprising: transmitting the atleast one additional de-multiplexed stream to the serving network on theat least one additional link from the second set of links for deliveryto the target UE.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set oflinks includes the first link and at least one additional link, whereinthe second set of links includes the second link and one or moreadditional links, wherein the multiplexed stream further includes atleast one additional media component and the de-multiplexing furtherde-multiplexes the multiplexed stream to generate at least oneadditional de-multiplexed stream that includes the at least oneadditional media component, wherein the multiplexed stream furtherincludes one or more additional media components and the de-multiplexingfurther de-multiplexes the multiplexed stream to generate one or moreadditional de-multiplexed streams that include the one or moreadditional media components, further comprising: transmitting the atleast one additional de-multiplexed stream to the serving network on theat least one additional link from the first set of links for delivery tothe target UE; and transmitting the one or more additionalde-multiplexed streams to the serving network on the one or moreadditional links from the second set of links for delivery to the targetUE.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first media componentincludes audio media for the WebRTC session and the second mediacomponent includes video media for the WebRTC session.
 11. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the first media component includes audio media andhigher-priority video media for the WebRTC session and the second mediacomponent includes lower-priority video media for the WebRTC session.12. The method of claim 1, wherein the UE and the target UE are eachserved by the serving network, and wherein an end-to-end connectionbetween the UE and the target UE does not traverse inter-network NetworkAddress Translation (NAT) and/or an inter-network firewall based on theUE and the target UE each being served by the serving network.
 13. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the target UE is served by another servingnetwork that is different than the serving network serving the UE, andwherein an end-to-end connection between the UE and the target UEtraverses inter-network Network Address Translation (NAT) and/or aninter-network firewall based on the UE and the target UE being served bydifferent serving networks.
 14. A method of operating a Web Real-TimeCommunication (WebRTC) proxy module at a user equipment (UE) that isengaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: obtaining a first set of linkswith each link in the first set of links being allocated at least athreshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and a second set of linksthat is different than the first set of links; receiving, during theWebRTC session, a first stream from a serving network on a first linkfrom the first set of links and a second stream from the serving networkon a second link from the second set of links, the first and secondstreams including de-multiplexed portions of a multiplexed stream that asource WebRTC multimedia client application at a source UE is attemptingto deliver to a WebRTC multimedia client application on the UE;re-multiplexing the first and second streams to produce a reconstructedversion of the multiplexed stream; and delivering the re-multiplexedstream to the WebRTC multimedia client application.
 15. The method ofclaim 14, wherein each link in the second set of links is allocatedeither zero QoS or an intermediate level of QoS that is greater thanzero QoS and is less than the threshold level of QoS.
 16. The method ofclaim 15, wherein at least one link in the second set of links isallocated zero QoS.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein at least onelink in the second set of links is allocated the intermediate level ofQoS.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein the threshold level of QoSincludes at least a given Guaranteed Bit Rate (GBR) for each link in thefirst set of links, wherein each link in the second set of links haszero GBR and/or a GBR that is lower than the given GBR.
 19. The methodof claim 14, wherein the first set of links includes only the first linkand the second set of links includes only the second link.
 20. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the first set of links includes the firstlink and at least one additional link, wherein the second set of linksincludes only the second link, further comprising: receiving at leastone additional stream from the serving network on the at least oneadditional link, the at least one additional stream including at leastone additional de-multiplexed portion from the multiplexed stream,wherein the re-multiplexing re-multiplexes the at least one additionalstream along with the first and second streams to produce thereconstructed version of the multiplexed stream.
 21. The method of claim14, wherein the second set of links includes the second link and atleast one additional link, wherein the first set of links includes onlythe second link, further comprising: receiving at least one additionalstream from the serving network on the at least one additional link, theat least one additional stream including at least one additionalde-multiplexed portion from the multiplexed stream, wherein there-multiplexing re-multiplexes the at least one additional stream alongwith the first and second streams to produce the reconstructed versionof the multiplexed stream.
 22. The method of claim 14, wherein the firstset of links includes the first link and at least one additional link,wherein the second set of links includes the second link and one or moreadditional links, further comprising: receiving at least one additionalstream from the serving network on the at least one additional link, theat least one additional stream including at least one additionalde-multiplexed portion from the multiplexed stream; and receiving one ormore additional streams from the serving network on the one or moreadditional links, the one or more additional streams including one ormore additional de-multiplexed portions from the multiplexed stream,wherein the re-multiplexing re-multiplexes the at least one additionalstream and the one or more additional streams along with the first andsecond streams to produce the reconstructed version of the multiplexedstream.
 23. The method of claim 14, wherein the first stream includesaudio media for the WebRTC session and the second stream includes videomedia for the WebRTC session.
 24. The method of claim 14, wherein thefirst stream includes audio media and higher-priority video media forthe WebRTC session and the second stream includes lower-priority videomedia for the WebRTC session.
 25. The method of claim 14, wherein the UEand the source UE are each served by the serving network, and wherein anend-to-end connection between the UE and the source UE does not traverseinter-network Network Address Translation (NAT) and/or an inter-networkfirewall based on the UE and the source UE each being served by theserving network.
 26. The method of claim 14, wherein the source UE isserved by another serving network that is different than the servingnetwork serving the UE, and wherein an end-to-end connection between theUE and the source UE traverses inter-network Network Address Translation(NAT) and/or an inter-network firewall based on the UE and the source UEbeing served by different serving networks.
 27. The method of claim 14,wherein the reconstructed version of the multiplexed stream is identicalto the multiplexed stream generated by the source WebRTC multimediaclient application.
 28. The method of claim 14, wherein thereconstructed version of the multiplexed stream is modified from themultiplexed stream generated by the source WebRTC multimedia clientapplication.
 29. The method of claim 28, wherein the reconstructedversion is compressed and/or is configured with a lower resolutionrelative to the multiplexed stream generated by the source WebRTCmultimedia client application.
 30. A user equipment (UE) configured toexecute a Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) proxy module that isengaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: means for obtaining a first setof links with each link in the first set of links being allocated atleast a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and a second set oflinks that is different than the first set of links; means forobtaining, during the WebRTC session, a multiplexed stream from a WebRTCmultimedia client application that the WebRTC multimedia clientapplication is attempting to deliver to a target WebRTC multimediaclient application on a target UE, the multiplexed stream including atleast a first media component and a second media component; means forde-multiplexing the multiplexed stream to generate a firstde-multiplexed stream that includes the first media component and asecond de-multiplexed stream that includes the second media component;means for transmitting the first de-multiplexed stream to a servingnetwork on a first link from the first set of links for delivery to thetarget UE; and means for transmitting the second de-multiplexed streamto the serving network on a second link from the second set of links fordelivery to the target UE.
 31. A user equipment (UE) configured toexecute a Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) proxy module that isengaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: means for obtaining a first setof links with each link in the first set of links being allocated atleast a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and a second set oflinks that is different than the first set of links; means forreceiving, during the WebRTC session, a first stream from a servingnetwork on a first link from the first set of links and a second streamfrom the serving network on a second link from the second set of links,the first and second streams including de-multiplexed portions of amultiplexed stream that a source WebRTC multimedia client application ata source UE is attempting to deliver to a WebRTC multimedia clientapplication on the UE; means for re-multiplexing the first and secondstreams to produce a reconstructed version of the multiplexed stream;and means for delivering the re-multiplexed stream to the WebRTCmultimedia client application.
 32. A user equipment (UE) configured toexecute a Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) proxy module that isengaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: logic configured to obtain afirst set of links with each link in the first set of links beingallocated at least a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and asecond set of links that is different than the first set of links; logicconfigured to obtain, during the WebRTC session, a multiplexed streamfrom a WebRTC multimedia client application that the WebRTC multimediaclient application is attempting to deliver to a target WebRTCmultimedia client application on a target UE, the multiplexed streamincluding at least a first media component and a second media component;logic configured to de-multiplex the multiplexed stream to generate afirst de-multiplexed stream that includes the first media component anda second de-multiplexed stream that includes the second media component;logic configured to transmit the first de-multiplexed stream to aserving network on a first link from the first set of links for deliveryto the target UE; and logic configured to transmit the secondde-multiplexed stream to the serving network on a second link from thesecond set of links for delivery to the target UE.
 33. A user equipment(UE) configured to execute a Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) proxymodule that is engaged in a WebRTC session, comprising: logic configuredto obtain a first set of links with each link in the first set of linksbeing allocated at least a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS)and a second set of links that is different than the first set of links;logic configured to receive, during the WebRTC session, a first streamfrom a serving network on a first link from the first set of links and asecond stream from the serving network on a second link from the secondset of links, the first and second streams including de-multiplexedportions of a multiplexed stream that a source WebRTC multimedia clientapplication at a source UE is attempting to deliver to a WebRTCmultimedia client application on the UE; logic configured tore-multiplex the first and second streams to produce a reconstructedversion of the multiplexed stream; and logic configured to deliver there-multiplexed stream to the WebRTC multimedia client application.
 34. Anon-transitory computer-readable medium containing instructions storedthereon, which, when executed by a user equipment (UE) configured toexecute a Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) proxy module that isengaged in a WebRTC session, cause the UE to perform operations, theinstructions comprising: at least one instruction to cause the UE toobtain a first set of links with each link in the first set of linksbeing allocated at least a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS)and a second set of links that is different than the first set of links;at least one instruction to cause the UE to obtain, during the WebRTCsession, a multiplexed stream from a WebRTC multimedia clientapplication that the WebRTC multimedia client application is attemptingto deliver to a target WebRTC multimedia client application on a targetUE, the multiplexed stream including at least a first media componentand a second media component; at least one instruction to cause the UEto de-multiplex the multiplexed stream to generate a firstde-multiplexed stream that includes the first media component and asecond de-multiplexed stream that includes the second media component;at least one instruction to cause the UE to transmit the firstde-multiplexed stream to a serving network on a first link from thefirst set of links for delivery to the target UE; and at least oneinstruction to cause the UE to transmit the second de-multiplexed streamto the serving network on a second link from the second set of links fordelivery to the target UE.
 35. A non-transitory computer-readable mediumcontaining instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a userequipment (UE) configured to execute a Web Real-Time Communication(WebRTC) proxy module that is engaged in a WebRTC session, cause the UEto perform operations, the instructions comprising: at least oneinstruction to cause the UE to obtain a first set of links with eachlink in the first set of links being allocated at least a thresholdlevel of Quality of Service (QoS) and a second set of links that isdifferent than the first set of links; at least one instruction to causethe UE to receive, during the WebRTC session, a first stream from aserving network on a first link from the first set of links and a secondstream from the serving network on a second link from the second set oflinks, the first and second streams including de-multiplexed portions ofa multiplexed stream that a source WebRTC multimedia client applicationat a source UE is attempting to deliver to a WebRTC multimedia clientapplication on the UE; at least one instruction to cause the UE tore-multiplex the first and second streams to produce a reconstructedversion of the multiplexed stream; and at least one instruction to causethe UE to deliver the re-multiplexed stream to the WebRTC multimediaclient application.